Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal will always have London and Sydney and yes, even Paris. But in 2017, and likely forever, they won’t have their long-awaited clash in Queens.
The 36-year-old Swiss fell one round short of facing his Spanish rival for the first time at the U.S. Open, dropping a four-set quarterfinal to former champ Juan Martin del Potro 7-5, 3-6, 7-6 (10-8), 6-4 late Wednesday night. It’s the 14th straight year tennis’s two greatest male players haven’t met in the season’s final major, since Nadal debuted in 2003. They’ve appeared in the draw’s final eight together six times, and both made the semis every year from 2008 to 2011—but never faced each other in Arthur Ashe Stadium.
In 2009 del Potro did what most people believed was impossible: He beat Nadal, and then Federer to capture the title—an astonishing feat with the two greatest players ever in their primes. Now del Potro will have to reverse the order to win a second U.S. Open.
The powerful Argentinian was steady when he needed it on Wednesday, winning his only break point of the first set and his lone set point of the third—the latter after denying Federer four chances to win the tiebreak. Del Potro saved his best stuff for the clinching set, committing just a single unforced error and cracking 12 winners. One of them caused Federer to duck: Del Potro’s forehand can be as fast as some men’s first serves. Federer would know—“Delpo” hammered a 110-mph winner in their 2009 Open final that prompted commentator Mary Carillo to laugh.
Federer, now concluding his astonishing 19th year of competing in major championships, entered the draw as the sentimental favorite. Considering his recent injury history and age, he had assembled an all-time great season, defeating Nadal for a career-defining Australian Open victory and taking his record eighth Wimbledon. Given his durability and on-court flair, he is the sport’s greatest athlete. But it would be remarkable for him to duplicate 2017’s success in 2018: In the six years from 2011 to 2016, he won just one major. Federer’s last nine months seemed to have come from an alchemy of greatness understandable only to those who conjure it. But there is no magic that can make 37-year-old body move like it’s 27.
Nadal turned 31 in June and has endured significant health trouble over the latter half of his career. Discounting the French Open—where his dominance doesn’t allow for rivalries and Federer hasn’t participated since 2015—Nadal had been to just five major quarterfinals in the six years before this U.S. Open. His return to the world’s top ranking is as impressive as Federer’s reinvention. But not even he is a sure bet to be in shape enough to reproduce what he’s already accomplished this season.
Going on 29, del Potro is now the tournament’s other comeback story. His injury history is worse than Nadal’s, to the point that it seemed he might never compete at a high level again. Since 2013, he’s missed more majors than he’s played. After his 2009 breakthrough—three major quarterfinals and the U.S. Open victory—it looked as though he would turn the Big Four of Federer, Nadal, Novak Djokovic, and Andy Murray into the Big Five. But del Potro reached only two major semis after that—including what he achieved Wednesday night. His opportunity to join the ranks of tennis’s legendary quartet is long gone: His bad wrists guaranteed it, and having each member of the Big Four hit the big 3-0 has now made it a moot point.
Yet del Potro still has the game to make up for lost time. His seeding over the last several years—he is 24th in this Open—has not reflected his raw talent, which used to be top-one, and still is top-ten. Prior to his wrist surgeries, he possessed a strong two-handed backhand that rounded out his skill set. That stroke has never been the same. It’s lost its force. In its place is a lollipop one-handed slice, or a topspin or flat two-hander better for its depth than its power. The one thing del Potro’s backhand has going for it is consistency: He committed just eight total errors on that side of ball against Federer, and unlike many players, he wasn’t running around to the forehand side desperately.
A heavy, accurate serve, a devastating forehand, controlled ground strokes all-around, decent movement, and a terrific heart—Delpo overcame a fever to defeat Austrian star Dominic Thiem in the fourth round—is the makeup of a top-tier player. One who can take on Nadal.
Del Potro is 5-8 career against the current world number one. But he topped Rafa in Rio last year, in a semifinal certain to be one of the best Olympics tennis matches for all time. “It could be even better than the U.S. Open tournament,” he said of his experience, which concluded with a silver medal after losing to Murray. Winning another Open would be gold—not just for the prize, but the story, too.
