Novak Djokovic of Serbia won 6-4, 6-2, 6-7 (3/7), 6-1 over Rafael Nadal of Spain in the men’s singles final of the 2011 US Open in a grueling contest that lasted 4 hours, 10 minutes.
Djokovic improved to 64-2 with 10 tournament titles in a simply spectacular year for the Serb.
Nadal a 10-time Grand Slam title winner, slumped to his sixth defeat in six meetings in 2011 against Djokovic.
Djokovic attributes his surge to a variety of factors, including a vastly improved serve, better fitness, owing, at least in part, to a gluten-free diet he doesn’t like to discuss in any detail, and a seemingly endless reservoir of self-belief dating to December, when he led Serbia to its first Davis Cup title.
The biggest change Nadal has noticed of Djokovic is that, “He’s confident enough in every moment to keep believing in one more ball, one more ball,” Nadal said. “His forehand is not more painful than before. His backhand is not more painful than before. Serve’s the same.”
“It’s an incredible feeling. I’ve had an amazing year. To play Rafa is always a great challenge and I hope we have many more tough matches in the years to come,” said Djokovic of Nadal.
