Ranking Prediction: Why Are Nadal and Djokovic Good Options for Rome? | ATP Tour

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Ranking Prediction: Why Are Nadal and Djokovic Good Options for Rome?

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May 06, 2024

Author: ATPTour.com/es staff

The fifth tournament of the ATP Masters 1000 season is here. The sport’s biggest stars will head to the Internazionali BNL d’Italia in Rome, where plenty of PIF ATP rankings can be scored.

Novak Djokovic is back in action, Rafael Nadal continues to gain form, and Daniil Medvedev is the reigning champion.

Before each tournament week, ATPTour.com analyzes three players who could be good picks for fans in the PIF ATP Rankings Predictor.

Make your choice!

Rafael Nadal – defense 0 points
Nadal may not be back to his best world-class form just yet. But if a 22-time major champion is available in Predictor and has no points to defend, then he’s probably worth picking.

It helps that Nadal has won a record 10 times in Rome and has a tournament record of 69-8. He has played 12 times in the league in his previous 18 appearances.

This will be only Nadal’s fourth tournament since the 2023 Australian Open. However, the southpaw, who will play a first-round qualifier, showed signs of progress in Madrid, where he unseated world No. 11 Alex de Mignaur, to whom he lost. last week in Barcelona.

Novak Djokovic – defense 180 points
The world No. 1 hasn’t played since Monte Carlo, but that could work in his favor heading into the season’s final clay-court ATP Masters 1000. The Serbian will be fresh and hungry for action.

A year ago, Djokovic reached the quarterfinals at Foro Italico, so he has 180 points. He has a 67-11 record in Rome, where he last lifted the trophy six times. The 36-year-old footballer never made it to the quarterfinals of the tournament.

Djokovic may not have a title yet this season, but he has reached the semi-finals at the Australian Open and Monte Carlo. Next he will try to advance in Italy, where he will begin his tournament against Roman Safiullin or qualifying.

Grigor Dimitrov – loss 0 points
Secretly, Dimitrov is enjoying his best season since 2017, when he captured glory at the Nitto ATP Finals.

The Bulgarian is 22-7 in 2024, including a title in Brisbane and a remarkable level that saw him reach finals in Marseille and Miami. Since they are defending 0 points, they have a lot of points to win in the next two weeks.

Dimitrov, who finished ninth in the PIF ATP Live Race To Turin, reached the semi-finals of that tournament in 2014 and the quarter-finals in 2020. He will open his tournament against Yoshihito Nishioka or Sebastian Ofner.

Bonus ball: Rafael Nadal.
Why is Nadal chosen as the bonus ball and not Djokovic? There is no risk.

That doesn’t mean Djokovic won’t win his seventh Foro Italico title. But since the Serbian defends 180 points, to increase positive points he will need to reach at least the quarterfinals.

Nadal has a lot to gain and nothing to lose. Combine that with his record in Rome and improving form, and the 36-time Masters 1000 champion could earn fans plenty of points in this week’s PIF ATP Rankings Predictor.