Nadal, bidding for a record-extending 14th French Open title, won the first five games of the match as he looked on course to repeat his drubbing of the Serb in last year's final.
His third straight triumph at the All England Club also earned the Serbian a 20th Grand Slam title
IMAGES from Day 4 of the 2022 French Open at Roland Garros in Paris on Wednesday.
While Djokovic has a firm grip on top spot, there will be a new number two on March 15 in Russian Daniil Medvedev, who will climb one place to his career-best ranking to replace Nadal, who has not played since the Australian Open due to a back injury.
Top seed Novak Djokovic made quick work of Tennys Sandgren at the Western and Southern Open on Tuesday, never dropping serve en route to a 6-2, 6-4 win over the American, while big-serving Milos Raonic enjoyed a straight sets win over Andy Murray.
World No 1 Novak Djokovic has taken an unusual route to prepare for his title defence at Wimbledon by confirming his participation in doubles at next week's ATP grasscourt event in Mallorca, Spain.
Nadal will not be playing at Wimbledon, having decided to rest, while eight-time champion Federer is showing signs that, at 39, the window of opportunity to win one more Slam is closing.
Images from Day 1 of the Wimbledon tennis championships in London, on Monday.
Novak Djokovic had hoped to have the crowd behind him as he began his bid to win the US Open and complete the calendar-year Grand Slam, but the Serb said the atmosphere was "not ideal" as Flushing Meadows fans roared on his underdog opponent.
The tournaments involve eight players each, divided into two pools of four on a round-robin basis. Sets have been slashed to best-of-seven games.
Rafael Nadal made a triumphant return to Roland Garros on Sunday
Novak Djokovic said he would do whatever was required to play at the Australian Open but hoped the government could also be accommodating.
Professional sports events in Italy have been played without fans since March due to the COVID-19 pandemic but sports minister Vincenzo Spadafora said fans would be allowed to attend the closing stages of the tournament on Sunday and Monday.
Novak Djokovic kept his unbeaten streak in 2020 alive as he survived a terrible start to defeat Milos Raonic 1-6, 6-3, 6-4 in the final of the Western & Southern Open on Saturday.
Sonego's first top-10 victory capped a dream week for the 25-year-old, who lost the final qualifier but entered the main draw as a lucky loser.
IMAGES from Day 8 of the French Open at Roland Garros on Sunday.
'There was a lot of speculation about whether it was deserved. I accepted it, I moved on.'
D Gukesh admires the way charismatic former India skipper MS Dhoni and iconic tennis player Novak Djokovic
Djokovic did not play badly in the final but it took him 55 minutes before he registered his first game in what turned out to be a mauling.
'I've achieved some things that a lot of people thought it would be not possible for me to achieve. Everything is possible, and I did put myself in a good position to go for the Golden Slam. But, you know, I was in this position in 2016 as well. It ended up in a third-round loss in Wimbledon.'
The 34-year-old bellowed a series of frightening roars after completing a victory that at one stage looked like a formality but became increasingly fraught as Berrettini threw the kitchen sink at the Serb who becomes only the second man to reach 40 Grand Slam semi-finals after Roger Federer.
Friday's match was a straight shootout for a last-four place, with world number five Rublev the favourite having won his four previous matches against Ruud.
Novak Djokovic has decided not to enter the Paris Masters because he has no points to win at the November 2-8 event as he bids to retain the world number one spot come end of season, the 33-year-old Serb said.
World number one Novak Djokovic overpowered Dennis Novak after Dusan Lajovic battled past Gerald Melzer and Serbia went on to a 3-0 win in their opener against Group F hosts Austria in the Davis Cup Finals in Innsbruck on Friday.
Novak Djokovic will need to spend some time on the sidelines recovering from a muscle tear that hindered him in the later rounds of the Australian Open, the Serbian said as he celebrated his ninth Melbourne Park title on Monday.
Daniil Medvedev said he was enjoying his growing rivalry with world number one Jannik Sinner despite coming out on the wrong end of the scoreline
Images from the US Open men's singles first round matches, at Flushing Meadows, New York, on Tuesday.
Alcaraz's triumph on the Parisian red dirt was the third Grand Slam trophy of his young career and followed the Spanish world number three's breakthrough title at the 2022 U.S. Open and epic Wimbledon victory 12 months ago.
No sooner had Novak Djokovic claimed his 17th Grand Slam trophy by triumphing at the Australian Open for the eighth time on Sunday, the Serb was already setting himself a deadline to claim the record of major titles. Djokovic's 6-4, 4-6, 2-6, 6-3, 6-4 victory in a thriller over fifth seed Dominic Thiem drew him within three slams of Roger Federer's haul of 20 and two behind second-placed Rafa Nadal's 19.
IMAGES from the Australian Open Men's semi-finals played on Friday.
Rafael Nadal warmed up for the French Open with a battling 7-5, 1-6, 6-3 win over world number one Novak Djokovic as the Spaniard claimed a record-extending 10th Italian Open title in Rome on Sunday in the latest chapter of their rivalry.
Novak Djokovic and his wife Jelena have tested negative for COVID-19, nine days after returning a positive test, the world number one tennis player's media team said on Thursday. Djokovic, along with Grigor Dimitrov, Borna Coric and Viktor Troicki, tested positive after playing in the Adria Tour, an exhibition tournament organised by the 17-times Grand Slam champion.
With Sunday's win, the world number one took his Grand Slam tally to 18, just two shy of Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal's men's record of 20.
Djokovic received a lot of heat from the tennis community and fans alike after testing positive.
After a dominant start, Djokovic struggled in the second set and lost his temper even after closing it out.
Spanish tennis federation released a statement to clarify that tennis players were not allowed to return to courts until May 11, and were only permitted to conduct individual training outside.
The major milestones in Djokovic's career
Images from Day 4 of the 2023 Australian Open, at Melbourne Park.
Dubbed the 'King of Clay' for his jaw-dropping 112-4 win-loss record at the Paris major, Rafael Nadal's last Roland Garros triumph came in 2022.
Novak Djokovic tried his hand at cricket as he bowled and batted against Australia's star cricketer Steve Smith.
