2009 MADRID MASTERS

SF    

               RAFAEL NADAL   v   NOVAK DJOKOVIC                 

3-6,7-6,7-6         

Novak Djokovic played the clay court match of his life but it wasn't quit enough to beat Rafael Nadal.

Claycourt maestro Rafael Nadal shrugged off a knee problem and saved three match points to beat Novak Djokovic in a dramatic semi-final at the Madrid Open.
The Spanish world number one was so close to losing for only the  fifth time on his favoured surface in 154 matches since the beginning of 2005 but rallied superbly to pull out the win.
In a nailbiting deciding tiebreak, Djokovic had match point and hit several shots that should have been good enough,

but Nadal's determination to avoid defeat was astonishing as he hit winners under pressure from an attacking and inspired Djokovic.

Djokovic himself showed tremendous calm down match point as he hit a splendid drop shot that caught Nadal off guard.

In the end, Nadal produced some stunning shots to save the three match points and converted his second to add another entry in his list of "best ever" matches.

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