There was a time when Roger Federer was invincible. He was the No. 1 tennis player in the world for a record 237 straight weeks. With a record 16 Grand Slam titles, he’s considered by many to be the greatest player of all time. But it has become obvious over the last few years that Rafael Nadal is Federer’s kryptonite.
When the two met for the 27th time on Thursday in the Australian Open, Federer lost to Nadal for the eighth time in a major 6-7 (5), 6-2, 7-6 (5), 6-4.
The Federer-Nadal rivalry has been one of the best in tennis history, but as of late it hasn’t been much of a rivalry at all.
Federer has not beaten Nadal in a major in nearly five years. The overall series stands at 18-9 in Nadal’s favor, and Nadal has won 10 of the last 13 matches.
At 30, Federer’s career is in the end stages (Pete Sampras retired at 32), but there’s little evidence that he’s losing his groove. In fact, he came into Melbourne on a 24-match winning streak.
But Federer didn’t win a major last year for the first time since 2003, and there’s plenty of evidence he cannot beat Nadal when it matters in Grand Slams.
Ever since Nadal bested Federer in an epic 2008 Wimbledon final, the dynamic of the rivalry shifted. Coming off a year when Novak Djokovic was better than both of them, it’s clear Federer’s time may be running out.
– Scott Gleeson
