Novak Djokovic’s Italian Open win showed what a threat he is to French Open favourite Rafael Nadal

Novak Djokovic puts US Open defaulting behind him and makes history by winning Italian Open to prove what a threat he will be to favourite Rafael Nadal at Roland Garros

  • Novak Djokovic took his 36th Masters 1000 title by winning in Rome on Monday
  • The world No 1 overcame his US Open fiasco to ease past Diego Schwartzmann
  • Djokovic proved he will be a major threat to rival Rafael Nadal at the French Open
  • The Serb is heading to Paris for the Grand Slam after a perfect preparatory eventĀ 

Fifteen days after the embarrassment of New York Novak Djokovic showed that he is ready to be a major problem for Rafael Nadal at the French Open.

The 33 year-old Serb put the events of Flushing Meadows behind him by winning the Italian Open final last night, recovering from a slow start to beat pugnacious Argentinian Diego Schwartzmann 7-5 6-3 before a small crowd at Rome’s Foro Italico.

As a reminder of his threat to Nadal – beaten by Schwartzmann on Saturday – he racked up his 36th Masters 1000 title, taking him one ahead of the Spaniard’s tally in the events just below Grand Slam level.

Novak Djokovic made the perfect comeback after being disqualified from the 2020 US Open

The Serb set a record as he won the Italian Open as a precursor to his French Open campaign

The Serb set a record as he won the Italian Open as a precursor to his French Open campaign

‘I don’t think I played my best tennis through the entire match but I found it when I needed it the most,’ said Djokovic, who could have summarised his whole week with that.

‘We go to Paris now and I couldn’t have asked for a better tournament.’

He won the title without beating any top ten ranked players, but avoided any serious controversy after his fourth round default at the US Open.

Returning rival Rafael Nadal will have even more reason to be wary of dangerous Djokovic now

Returning rival Rafael Nadal will have even more reason to be wary of dangerous Djokovic now

Having come back from a 0-3 deficit at the start his level was still a warning for his rivals. It looks very much like a three-horse race for the men’s title, with New York winner Dominic Thiem sitting out any preparatory events.

Wimbledon champion Simona Halep, who opted out of Flushing Meadows, suggested she is the favourite for the Paris women’s event, winning yesterday’s Rome final when opponent Karolina Pliskova retired at 6-0 2-1 down.

The French Open qualifying got underway yesterday ahead of its Sunday main draw start, with five players having withdrawn due to either their own positive Coronavirus tests or those of an associated coach. They may not be the last.

Djokovic described his victory in Rome as the perfect way to prepare for his title shot in Paris

Djokovic described his victory in Rome as the perfect way to prepare for his title shot in Paris