BEIJING 2013: Djokovic-Nadal XXXVIII In Final

For the 38th time in their careers and the fifth time this year Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic will face off across the net, in the finals of the Beijing Open. Just a few weeks ago they met in the finals of the US Open and Nadal came away with a 6-2 3-6 6-4 6-1 win (after being down 2-4 in the 3rd set!). Nadal leads their overall head-to-head 22-15 and has only lost one of their meetings this year (in the Monte Carlo final on clay).

Nadal has had an astonishing year to date, reaching 13 finals in fourteen tournaments (lost in the first round of Wimbledon) and winning 10 titles. Regardless of the result in the Beijing final, Nadal will regain the #1 ATP World Tour ranking again on Monday, for the first time since he lost it (to Roger Federer) in July 2011.

Nadal has only lost 3 times all year long and has been unbeaten on hard courts. I think it is likely that streak will come to an end on Sunday. Djokovic has generally fared better in their hard court meetings and Nadal was down a set and a break against Fabio Fognini 2 round ago before escaping with a 3-set win. Djokovic has been sharp all week and has won 3 of the last 4 championships held in Beijing.

MadProfessah's pick: Djokovic in 3 sets.