Sebastian Korda reflects on tight losses against Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic

Sebastian Korda admits it is inspiring to hear Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic speaking positively about his game.

In the 2022 Indian Wells Masters second round, Korda fell just short of upsetting Nadal as the Spaniard escaped with a 6-2 1-6 7-6 (3).

In the third set, Korda was up by two breaks and had a 5-2 lead before Nadal stunningly recovered to win. 

Last week, Korda fell just short of stunning Novak Djokovic in the Adelaide final.

In the Adelaide final, Djokovic saved a championship point en route to winning 6-7 (8) 7-6 (3) 6-4.

Nadal described Korda as “a great one,” while Djokovic described the American as “so talented.”

“I saw that he wanted to make my game ugly. It’s funny, it’s awesome to hear those great words from him and I’ve gotten a lot of great words from Nadal and him. It’s really kind of inspiring to just keep pushing forward knowing I’m doing the right things and just keep believing in myself and [knowing that] I’m on the right path,” Korda told the ATP website.

Korda: I had my chances against Nadal and Djokovic 

“Obviously I’ve had my chances against Nadal and then Djokovic, but I’m still young and those moments will only help me going forward as long as I learn from them. I think overall there are still a lot of positives to take away from the match. It was very close, but still very far,” Korda reflected.

Korda, who is 22, is regarded as one of the most promising and talented players in the world.

American men’s tennis hasn’t had a male Grand Slam champion ever since Andy Roddick won the 2003 US Open title. 

Now, some are putting hope and belief in Korda to make the big Grand Slam breakthrough that American tennis is hoping for. 

12 months ago, Korda made the Australian Open third round in his main draw debut at Melbourne Park.

It remains to be seen how good can Korda do at this year’s Australian Open.