World number 148th ranker Paolo Lorenzi put World number One Rafael Nadal through a grueling task before losing out to the reigning Champion. The opening match which stretched on to 6-7 (5), 6-4, 6-0 at the Italian Open showed that continuous play was taking its toll on Nadal. Clay being Nadal’s domain for the past six years saw him struggling for the win.
This is the third consecutive match Nadal has surrendered his first set ever. He also rallied through to beat Roger Federer at the semifinals of the Madrid Open. Nadal lost out in straight sets to Novak Djokovic .So far Nadal hasn’t lost matches consecutively on his favorite surface, clay.
Djokovic registered his winning streak this year at 33 matches with stupendous straight sets 6-0, 6-3 win over Polish qualifier Lukasz Kubot. The Serb is inching towards the top rank which is currently held by Nadal. The semi-finals is quite crucial for Nadal, if he fails to make it the semifinals and Djokovic wins the Italian open, Nadal will be dethroned .
Termed as warm-up for the French open, the Foro Italico is a prequel of things to come. The French open kicks off in 11 days. Djokovic have won an overall 35 consecutive matches.
The Serbia's Davis Cup triumph in December 2010 put Djokovic on the bend, tying him at the sixth position with the legendary Bjorn Borg in (1978), Tennis sensation Thomas Muster in (1995) and World number three Roger Federer in (2005).
