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The top half of the men’s draw at Wimbledon saw a surprising upset Wednesday, as Kevin Anderson took down eight-time champ Roger Federer, but the bottom half saw two familiar names advance to the semifinal at the All-England Club: Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic, who will meet Friday in a must-see battle in London.
Looking to watch a live stream of Djokovic vs Nadal? In the United States, the match is scheduled to start after the John Isner vs Kevin Anderson match and will be broadcast on ESPN. But if you don’t have cable or can’t get to a TV, you can still easily watch the match live (or DVR it) on your computer, phone or streaming device by signing up for one of the following cable-free, live-TV streaming services:
In addition to a Netflix-like on-demand streaming library, Hulu now also offers a bundle of live TV channels, including all of the ESPN channels (ESPN, ESPN 2, ESPN U and ESPNews). You can sign up for “Hulu with Live TV” right here, and you can then watch a Djokovic vs Nadal live stream on your computer via the Hulu website, or on your phone, tablet or streaming device via the Hulu app.
Additionally, if you aren’t able to watch live, “Hulu with Live TV” also comes with 50 hours of Cloud DVR storage (with the ability to upgrade to “Enhanced Cloud DVR,” which gives you 200 hours of DVR space and the ability to fast forward through commercials), allowing you to record the match if you want.
ESPN and ESPN 2 are both included in the “Sling Orange” channel package. You can sign up for a free 7-day trial right here, and you can then watch a Djokovic vs Nadal live stream on your computer via the Sling TV website, or on your phone, tablet or streaming device via the Sling TV app.
Additionally, if you can’t watch live, you can get 50 hours of cloud DVR storage as an additional add-on when signing up for your free trial.
ESPN Platforms
This match can also be watched on your computer via ESPN.com, or on your phone, tablet or streaming device via the ESPN app. You’ll need to log-in to a cable provider to watch this way, but if you don’t have that, you can still sign up for one of the above options and then use your Hulu or Sling TV credentials to sign in and watch on the ESPN digital platforms.
Preview
From 2011 through 2016, Novak Djokovic was a mainstay in Grand Slam semifinals, advancing at least that far in 22 of the 24 majors (and winning 11) over that span. A lingering elbow injury forced him to bow out before the semis at the next six Grand Slam tournaments, but it appears the former World No. 1 is finally returning to form after a year-and-a-half of frustration.
Through five wins in London, the 31-year-old has dropped just two sets and has wrapped up every match in less than three hours. His quarterfinal win over Kei Nishikori was a dominant display, as he hit 40 winners to just 21 unforced errors, won 85 percent of his first-serve points and broke Nishikori seven times. After losing the second set, he turned into Vintage Djoker and won 12 of the next 16 games to return to the Wimbledon semis for the seventh time.
And that’s where he’ll meet Rafael Nadal for the 52nd time.
It was far from simple for the Spaniard. After winning each of his first four matches in less than two hours and 25 minutes, Nadal needed just about double that–four hours and 48 minutes–to take down Juan Martin del Potro in five sets (7-5, 6-7, 4-6, 6-4, 6-4) in the quarterfinals on Wednesday.
Easy or not, Nadal is into the Wimbledon semifinals for the first time in 2011. That’s also the last year Djokovic and Nadal met at the All-England Club, with Djokovic winning 6-4, 6-1, 1-6, 6-3 in the final.
Overall, it’s been incredibly close between these two over the years, as Djokovic owns a 26-25 head-to-head record. Nadal has won the last two matchups, but those were both on clay, and Djokovic won the previous seven pre-2017 and pre-elbow injury.
Moreover, Djokovic has historically been a better grass-court player and could potentially be a little more rested, as he wasn’t pushed nearly as hard in his quarterfinal matchup. As such, he’s the slight favorite to advance, but this should be a thrilling, high-quality match no matter what ultimately happens.
Whoever wins will surely be favored in the final against either John Isner or Kevin Anderson.