The blockbuster matches have been coming fast and furious at the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters this week and there’s a huge one lined up for quarterfinal Friday: Rafael Nadal against Dominic Thiem.
Here are 10 things to know about this battle between two of the best clay-court players in the business.
Thiem has spent almost twice as much time on court as Nadal this week. Thiem needed 2:40 to come back from match point down and beat Andrey Rublev in his opening match, 5-7, 7-5, 7-5, and 2:29 to beat Novak Djokovic in the round of 16, 6-7 (5), 6-2, 6-3, for a total of 5:09 on court this week.
Nadal has spent a total of 2:37 on court so far this week—he needed just 1:18 to breeze past Aljaz Bedene in his opening match, 6-1, 6-3, then 1:19 to beat Karen Khachanov in the round of 16, 6-3, 6-2.
Thiem has won 17 of his last 19 matches on clay. Since the start of last year’s French Open, he’s 17-2 on this surface, the only two losses coming to Nadal in the semifinals in Paris last year and to another Spanish lefty—Fernando Verdasco—in the quarterfinals of Rio de Janeiro earlier this year.
Nadal’s won 30 of his last 31 matches on clay. The world No. 1’s only loss on clay in almost two years came at the hands of none other than Thiem—a 6-4, 6-3 loss in the quarters of Rome last year.
Nadal has also won his last 11 matches—and amazingly his last 30 sets—on this surface.
Nadal has now reached the quarterfinals or better in Monte Carlo for 14 years in a row. That’s every single year since 2005—and his record in Monte Carlo quarterfinals is an almost-perfect 12-1, the only loss he’s suffered in this round coming in 2014 to countryman David Ferrer, 7-6 (1), 6-4.
Meanwhile, Thiem is through to the quarterfinals in Monte Carlo for the first time in his career.
Thiem has beaten a world No. 1 before. And it was on red clay, too—Thiem outslugged then-No. 1 Andy Murray in the semifinals of Barcelona a year ago, 6-2, 3-6, 6-4, for the biggest win of his career.
WATCH the Daily Mix - Nina Pantic discusses Rafael Nadal and Dominic Thiem:
