He beat (Novak) Djokovic before in Miami so I wasn't expecting it to be easy.
For Djokovic, there has been no shortage of pick-me-ups in the past nine months.
Djokovic's serve, sloppy as recently as last season, is now precise, fluid and, at times, devastating.
He shrugged off the possibility of facing Djokovic in the last four rather than the final.
Rafael Nadal, Robin Soderling, Novak Djokovic and Nikolay Davydenko kick off Group B on Monday.
Grigor Dimitrov, a 22-year-old long on talent but short on results, beat Djokovic in Madrid.
World No. 1 Novak Djokovic will also line up in the six-man, three-day event.
Nadal and Djokovic have played 32 times (Nadal leads 18-14) and many have been astounding battles.
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Djokovic and Nadal have played each other 34 times, with Nadal winning 19 and Djokovic 15.
The victory followed wins for world no.1 Novak Djokovic and Troicki in Friday's singles matches.
Djokovic was playing his second round opener later Wednesday against young Australian Bernard Tomic.
For three straight matches in Melbourne, Djokovic has had difficulty breathing (he has blamed allergies).
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Djokovic is something Nadal has never seen in his entire tennis career: a genuine nemesis.
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"I'm sorry for my performance today, Rafa played well and deserved to win today, " said Djokovic.
"Congratulations ... good luck for the rest of the season, " Nadal told Djokovic at the ceremony.
Last year, Djokovic's grandfather died during the tournament but he kept playing to reach the final.
Chants of "Nole, Nole" broke out as Djokovic saved two break points and held for 2-1.
One of the pillars of that global push is Serbian tennis ace Novak Djokovic.
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On Sunday evening, Nadal won the first set after a shaky start from Djokovic.
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Djokovic's been erratic at times this tournament, but there's an irresistible mission here in Paris.
Djokovic, the relentless winner of four of the last five slams, wasn't going down easy.
Once considered an interloper with dubious endurance, Djokovic, 24, now stands as the sport's alpha.
The unquestioned top three are world No. 1 Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer.
Sharapova and Djokovic were handed similar roles for Russia and Serbia respectively earlier this month.
Between them, they have won 31 Slams, and Djokovic is still shopping in aisle one.
Djokovic's defeat means second seed Andy Murray is the highest-ranked player left in the draw.
Djokovic broke for the only time to reach 3-all, but lost his serve again.
"It's definitely the worst match I have played in a long time, " Djokovic said.
Sunday's Australian Open men's final in Melbourne between Djokovic and Murray fell into this space.
World number one Novak Djokovic has already been an outspoken critic of the surface.
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