Gael Monfils and Novak Djokovic faced off for the first time in their senior career back in 2005, in the first round of the US Open. That match was a rollercoaster ride that had it all. Twists and turns, bagels, medical issues, you name it, and the game had it. That match ran very close, finishing 7-5, 4-6, 7-6, 0-6, 7-5 to Djokovic. One may have thought that this would be the beginning of a great rivalry. However, the head-to-head record between these two men stands at a shocking 18-0 in favor of Djokovic.
The Serb now has the chance to extend it to 19-0 when he faces Monfils at the Cincinnati Open in the Round of 16. With Monfils now World No. 211 following multiple injury layoffs, this match is likely not to run so close and Djokovic will be eyeing an easy win.
Novak Djokovic recovers from a bagel
Djokovic and Monfils, both 18 at that point, had been playing pro tennis for barely a couple of years. Monfils had defeated the Serb when they had previously met in an ITF Futures tournament. In their US Open clash, the first set went Djokovic’s way but the Frenchman bounced back to take the second set convincingly.
The Serb won the third set after a tie-break to go ahead once more, but Monfils came back roaring. He won the fourth set 6-0, also known as a bagel, and Djokovic looked down and out. The future World No.1 would bounce back to claim the fifth set and win an entertaining match.
Djokovic, who came into the game as an underdog, went down twice in need of medical attention in the fifth set. Given the match was being played in hot afternoon conditions, it was suspected that the Serb was down with heatstroke. He, however, was back on his feet and rallied to triumph. There was talk of him using the medical timeouts to break Monfils’ momentum. The Frenchman had the better statistics on the day, sending down 22 aces, winning more points and committing less than half the unforced errors his opponent committed.
After the match, Djokovic talked about the medical timeouts, admitting that it did help him and even apologizing to Monfils.
“The timeouts helped me a lot. He was physically better prepared than me. I’m really sorry because Gael is a real good friend of mine. But I had to do it.”
Monfils, who was the world’s top-ranked junior player, voiced his discontent. He was not convinced about the legitimacy of Djokovic’s medical issues, ruing the extra time his breaks took. He was denied a bathroom break as well.
“I just don’t know if he was faking it or it was for real. We made a long point, it was 40-all. You get only 25 seconds to play again.”
The match lasted about four hours in the blazing afternoon sun. Monfils, to this date, has never beaten Djokovic.
The closest Monfils came to beating Djokovic
After that loss at the 2005 US Open, Monfils did come close to getting his revenge upon Novak Djokovic a couple of times. In 2009, the duo clashed in the final of the Paris Masters and the match went all the way to the tie-break in the third set. Monfils bounced back after surrendering the first set to win the second in front of his home crowd. He stumbled in the tiebreak, losing 6-2, 5-7, 7-6(7-3). A very similar story ensued in the Round of 32 at the Canada Open in 2014.
Monfils closest brush with victory over Djokovic came in the semi-finals of the Dubai Tennis Championships in 2020. Having won the first set, the Frenchman had match points in the tie-breaker of the second set. He, unfortunately, could not convert them, losing the set. Djokovic wrapped up the third set to complete the win. Monfils has stayed winless but has the chance to get his first victory over Djokovic when they face off at the Cincinnati Open.
