Roger Federer, the only man to beat Novak Djokovic this year, tells ESPN that world No. 2 Rafael Nadal has bigger problems facing the Serbian than he does. Djokovic has beaten Nadal in all five finals they contested this year.
"I don’t have a mentality block against Novak like maybe Rafa does," Federer said.
The Swiss later added in his press conference: "I think Rafa is a great champion. I don't think it's rattling him badly, [but it] should have some effect on him, because he doesn't have losing streaks against many players, or hasn't had, because he was such a good teenager, really."
Nadal, who has been struggling with his confidence, said that he does not have enough time to play catch-up with Djokovic this year. "I have a goal right now and that's improve my tennis to be good enough to compete against him for next year," he said. "For this year, I don't have enough time to practice, but hopefully for next year, yes, I have to change and improve a few things, and that's what I'm going to try."