Nadal-Federer
By Oliver Fitzpatrick
After the year of upsets that was 2016, we have some normality back in the world — well at least in the tennis world.
Federer won the Australian Open, Nadal the French. Never has a sport been dominated by two players in the same way tennis has been by these two. It is amazing to think that the second most successful male tennis player of all time’s career will always be talked about in relation to his rivalry with the greatest. For all of Rafael Nadal’s individual achievements and accolades — including recently winning his 10th Roland Garros; perhaps his greatest accomplishment was that he competed with, and at times bested, the greatest player of them all — Roger Federer.
Federer’s recent Australian Open win was even more special for the fact that it was won against his longest and perhaps only true rival. Their careers have become intertwined, and despite all the individual success that each player has achieved, to talk of one without mentioning the other is only painting half the picture.
Nadal remains the only player to have consistently bested the player commonly considered the greatest of all time in men’s tennis when at his peak. It was almost as if the tennis Gods dreamed up Rafa to re-balance the world order in the wake of the Federer’s dominance. Nadal’s game, which is built on grit, determination, and sheer will to win is the antithesis of Federer’s elegance, calmness and regality on court. Federer was gifted all the tennis ability in the world and everything he does looks effortless, while both Nadal and his opponent have to fight for every point and nothing ever looks easy. Nadal’s powerful left-handed forehand was custom-built to derail Federer, whose magnificent one-handed backhand has proved fragile when bombarded with such a unique and powerful weapon, especially on the slower clay courts.
The Beginnings: Federer’s Dominance, Nadal’s Clay Fortress
The beginnings of the rivalry started with Federer treating Nadal like the annoying new kid at school who was constantly harassing and trying to break into the ‘cool group’ of kids. While Federer had stamped his authority on tennis in 2004 by winning three of the four Grand Slams, in that very year, an 18-year-old Nadal was beginning to make a name for himself — winning the Davis Cup for Spain against World No.2 Andy Roddick and being one of only six players to defeat Roger Federer that year.
In 2005, Nadal forced his way into the ‘cool group’ by not only beating Federer in the French Open semi-final, but winning the tournament in his first attempt in a statement that would go on to define Rafa’s career almost as much as his intense rivalry with Federer.
However, although Nadal was now in the conversation, Federer was still the subject of it. From 2004–07, Federer won 11 out of the possible 12 Grand Slam titles not on clay, whilst Nadal won 3 French Opens. At this stage, Federer’s tennis kingdom was as glorious as any had ever been, but in the shadows still lurked the impenetrable fortress on clay that Nadal had built for himself. However, Federer was still missing one piece of the puzzle to lay claim to being the greatest of all time — he had never won the French Open. He made three consecutive finals from 2006–08, only to be thwarted each time by this new precocious fighter from Spain.
In this time period they played some of the most epic Grand Slam finals in history — Rafa dominating in France, and Roger holding on in England — Federer would win 5 Wimbledons in a row, Nadal 4 French Opens. Federer was clearly the best player in the world — from Wimbledon 2005 to the 2010 Australian Open, he missed just one Grand Slam Final (2008 Aus Open), with 7 of these 15 tournaments being decided by a Federer-Nadal final.
However, the fact Federer could not beat Nadal on clay was a major black mark to his status. Similarly, Nadal could claim to be the greatest clay court player of all time, but he wanted to be number one on all surfaces, and, he especially wanted to lift the most famous of all trophies in tennis — Wimbledon.
Wimbledon — The Measuring Stick
A perfect assessment of the evolution of their rivalry and their overall dominance of the sport comes in the form of analysing their Wimbledon finals. The first time they met, in 2006, Federer was already royalty at the club and easily brushed the young upstart aside to take out his fourth consecutive Wimbledon crown. The following year, Rafa came back much stronger and pushed Federer all the way to five sets before finally succumbing to the Swiss magician. In 2008, they played in probably the greatest Grand Slam final, if not tennis match, of all time.
Going in to the match, Federer’s confidence must have been reasonably high — despite the overall head-to-head being 11–6 in Nadal’s favour — it was inflated by the fact they had played 10 of those matches on clay, of which Federer had only won one. Despite being easily beaten in the French Open, he had never lost to Nadal on grass, and held a 3–2 head-to-head advantage on hard courts. He was the indisputable world №1 and had not lost a match at Wimbledon in six years. Nadal must have also felt confident leading into the match — he had clearly gotten the better of Federer on clay and had greatly improved his serving, however, he had failed at this final hurdle for the previous two years. He was playing the best player of all time on his favourite court, where he had still not beaten Federer despite playing the best tennis of his life.
The match itself sums up their whole rivalry — moments of unplayable brilliance from Federer mixed in with incredible defence and inspired passing shots from Rafa, with both players excelling when their backs were against the wall. Both of these players have the ability that all truly great champions of sport have — they play their best when the odds are against them. When all seems lost, they are able to find a way to win and this match exemplified that fighting spirit in both players. Nadal, the underdog leading into the match, won the first two sets to be on the precipice of his maiden Wimbledon title. Federer, not ready to relinquish his supremacy, displayed his mental fortitude, which is often forgotten due to his genius. He slowly turned the tables by winning the third set tie-break. He then elicited nerves of steel to hold after being 0–30 with the score 4–5 on his serve to force a famous fourth set tie-break.
If this article is not enough for you, then I strongly recommend watching if not the whole match (taking 4 hours and 48 minutes), then the fourth set tie-break — which is a microcosm of everything that makes watching Federer and Nadal so enthralling.
It was like watching Albert Einstein take on Stephen Hawking in a battle of wits — each throwing up flawless points of logic, only to be countered with the perfect argument, with spectators not understanding how any of it was possible. The points in the tie-break must be amongst the best ever played, while the stakes at an all-time high. Not only were match and set points saved, but whole reputations were on the line. Both players attacked and were not unnerved, despite knowing that one mistake could forever change their legacy. Somehow, Federer saved 2 match points and held on to win the tie-break 10–8, forcing a fifth set. After this phenomenal tie-break, Federer would surely have expected to have finally seen off his rival and confirmed his status as perpetual Wimbledon champion. Indeed, any player other than Nadal would surely have crumbled mentally — he had been two sets up, had played remarkable tennis in the tie-break and it still hadn’t been enough to give him his life’s ambition, the Wimbledon trophy. During the 5th set, Federer was within sight of maintaining his immaculate record at Wimbledon, only two points away from the trophy, but his nemesis would never let him take it easily. Instead, Nadal did what every great fighter does, he dug deep and finally broke through for his maiden Wimbledon triumph, winning the fifth set, 9–7.
Changing of the Guard
This win marked a new point in the Federer-Nadal rivalry, for up to this point, Federer was clearly the best player of the two, but Nadal had the wood on him on clay. After this, however, Nadal went from being a champion on clay to being a champion everywhere. Nadal finally broke Federer’s grasp not only on Wimbledon, but also on the World No.1 ranking — claiming it two months later. Nadal had actually only won 3 Grand Slams prior to this tournament (all being the French), but has gone on to win 11 more since, with only injury preventing further success. This match was played in the middle of an unparalleled period of dominance for two players — incredibly, from 2004 to 2010, Federer and Nadal won a combined 24 of the possible 28 Grand Slams — Fed taking 15 and Nadal 9. Federer would never quite return to the level of dominance he experienced before this match, despite going on to win the French Open the following year — when he didn’t have to face Nadal.
Leading into this final, Federer had won 10 of the previous 16 Grand Slams and Nadal 4; Federer has only won 6 in the 9 years since. Federer was still the best player in the world when Rafa got injured, but he didn’t have the same air of invincibility about him. Yes, other great players emerged (Djokovic & Murray), which made it harder for him to continually dominate, but it is also possible that Federer was scarred from this defeat at the hands of his rival and was never able to recapture the form and confidence that made him virtually unbeatable. This defeat showed Federer that even his best was not always good enough against Nadal, and led to him changing his game down the track, which, much to Federer’s credit, proved successful eventually.
No More Absolute Dominance
It is a great shame that since Nadal’s shining moment in 2008, he has rarely been able to consistently stay injury free and play the tennis that he proved he is capable of. The only year he was able to really dominate was in 2010, when he won three of the four Grand Slams, after retiring hurt in the Aus Open. Never doing things easily, Nadal forged a new rivalry with the emerging Djokovic, and played out some heroic Grand Slam Finals. Despite being only 22 years old in 2008, Nadal’s body let him down — his style of play has largely been held responsible for his physical problems — he plays with energy and force not seen before on a tennis court.
Over the eight years from 2008 to the start of this year, Nadal and Federer drifted apart, with their matches no longer being finals of Grand Slams. Their matches rekindled memories, instead of creating new ones. Nadal maintained his dominance in France — only losing one match there from 2005–2014, in 2009, the year in which Federer won his only Roland Garros title. Both were always relevant and among the favourites at tournaments, but unlike from 2005–2010, it wasn’t a shock if they were eliminated before the final. Federer’s defeat in the 2015 US Open final meant it was the first time since 2003 that neither Nadal or Federer had won a Grand Slam for the year. From 2011–15, Nadal won his 4 French Opens, but each player only won 1 other Grand Slam each — Federer the 2012 Wimbledon and Nadal the 2013 US Open. Djokovic proved to be a nemesis for Nadal — beating him in 3 consecutive finals. However, despite their lack of dominance, both were always thought of as possibilities to win each Grand Slam and regularly appeared in finals — of the 20 finals in this period, only 7 didn’t feature either player.
It wasn’t until 2016 that it became a distinct possibility that we would never see either player back winning Grand Slams again, it was the first time since 2003 that neither player made a Grand Slam final. Federer’s advancing age was his biggest concern, and he was now suffering from injuries that he had avoided throughout his career. He had pulled out of both the French and US Opens due to injury and many were fearful that retirement was imminent after his defeat in the Wimbledon semi-final. Nadal, whilst only just over 30, was similarly hampered by injuries — he had played through them for most of his career, but now they were affecting him to the point where he couldn’t be the player he once was. He lost his second ever match in France in 2015 and pulled out during the tournament in 2016. After this problematic year for both players, it was pondered whether they would ever play each other again at all. And, just as this rivalry seemed to have died a quiet death, the two conjured up a miracle in Australia to give fans another insight into their combined genius.
A Renaissance
Despite netiher having played competitively leading up to the Open, they somehow made their way to the final — helped by the falling away of their rivals, but also winning some memorable matches on the way. For Federer, the 34 year old was giving Australian fans what they thought was one last look at his majestry and rewinding the clock. Whilst Nadal was defying the odds just being there and getting through each match without succumbing to injury. When they did finally achieve the fairytale and make the final together, it was almost too hard to believe. This time, despite his obvious physical issues, Nadal had to be the favourite — he had beaten Federer so many times that he now was almost not a rival but a bully — the head-head score was 11–23 in Nadal’s favour. Nadal was 5 years his younger and nobody had won a Grand Slam at Federer’s age since Ken Rosewall in 1972.
The match itself was another epic, understandably not at the same level skill-wise that they had played in the past, but tense and full of clutch moments none-the-less. In many ways, this match was their most significant for a few reasons — Nadal had won only three fewer Grand Slams than Federer going into the match and if he won, he would have a chance at breaking Federer’s record over the rest of his career, but if he lost, it may be a bridge too far. Additionally, Federer is approaching the zenith of his career — indeed many feared he would retire after Wimbledon last year, and although clearly still playing good tennis, it wouldn’t take much to derail a 34 year old’s hopes in the future, so this could very well be his last chance at a major title.
It seemed at the time almost certainly to be the last time that these two great rivals would play in a Grand Slam final together — all the pieces of the puzzle came together, they were on opposite sides of the draw, the favourites lost early on, their bodies held up. So this would be the final chance that Federer had to somewhat even the ledger on their head-to-head matches at the highest level. Remarkably, Federer had not beaten Nadal in a Grand Slam final since their 2007 Wimbledon final, when Nadal was only 20 years old. Now, 10 years on, he could finally put some demons to bed.
The match highlighted the genius that is Roger Federer. For so many losses to Nadal in the past, Federer had clearly been rattled and thought he needed to change his game to combat the Spaniard. In this match, Federer played without fear and with the style that had won him 17 Grand Slams in the past. He played as if he had never met Nadal before — audaciously hitting one-handed backhand winners past Nadal’s forehand, a shot which must have given Federer nightmares in the past. And, when the match was over, another chapter was added to this remarkable tale of two greats of tennis.
Since then, Nadal has proven that reaching the Australian Open final was no fluke by winning the French Open for the 10th time without dropping a set. Federer chose to rest and recover in preparation for another tilt at Wimbledon. With both Djokovic and Murray not playing at their peak and Federer and Nadal both rewinding the clock, the stage is set for another enticing final between these two geniuses.
An Untainted Legacy
The beauty with this rivalry, and what almost makes it unique, it that there is no hatred between the two champions — there is competitiveness and serious drive to win, but there is an immense amount of respect directed towards the other. Both players understand that the sport is bigger than themselves, and have somehow managed to maintain their images as humble, virtuous ambassadors of the sport despite being in the game for close to 15 years and winning a combined 33 Grand Slams. Federer’s name has almost reached the level of Bradman, where it transcends just the man himself and can be used to describe anything that is elegant and majestic.
Federer and Nadal’s careers have been at a time when all elite athletes are under the most scrutiny ever — with social media and mobile phones meaning that any indiscretion can be recorded and re-played across the world instantly. Neither Nadal or Federer have had any scandals, and remain the paramount role models for all young athletes — whether in tennis or for other sports. This is exemplified by Nadal’s press conference after coming agonisingly close to winning the Australian Open Final: “It was a great match, I enjoyed to be a part of it.” It is hard to imagine a similar reaction at a press conference from Steve Smith after losing the Ashes, or Joel Selwood after losing the AFL Grand Final to Hawthorn — not taking away from those champions of their sport, merely showing that Nadal and Federer are unique in their respect for both the sport itself and their rival.
Indeed, most modern professional athletes have been media trained to the point where nothing they say is insightful, again Nadal and Federer’s true character is so exemplary that they can be themselves to the press, knowing they have nothing controversial or derogatory to say. They have regularly come together for charities and their jovial relationship off the court is demonstrated by the outtakes from an attempted charity match video.
Every time they play each other, it is a marvel — even those who aren’t great tennis fans can appreciate the spectacle of two great, but humble rivals trying their best to win, but never degrading the sport or down-playing the other’s achievements. Not only are they two of the greatest tennis players of all time, but they have shared the greatest tennis rivalry of all time. Never has the sport been completely enraptured by two players, who not only inspire people on the court but are great ambassadors for the sport off it. Each player would have been considered one of, if not the, best players ever, but it is their contribution as adversaries and yet together, that will forever keep both men at the top of not only tennis, but sport in general. We hold onto the hope that the Australian Open final wasn’t just a generous flashback to memories past, and they play another epic final in England; but even if they never play again, they have given more to the sport than any others in history.
