In the pre-dawn hours (stateside) on Sunday January 29, arguably the two greatest players in tennis history will take the court in the Australian Open final. Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, the only two men to have claimed at least 14 grand slam singles titles while winning each of the four slams, will renew their epic rivalry. Tennis fans have been waiting a long time for this moment.
The last time Federer and Nadal played against each other in a grand slam tournament was three years ago, in the 2014 Australian Open. The last time they faced off in a grand slam final was almost six years ago, in the 2011 French Open. The last time they did so on a relatively neutral surface, unlike Paris’s clay or London’s lawn, was eight years ago, in the 2009 Australian Open—when Federer was 27 and Nadal 22. Few could have imagined on that day that fans would have to wait this long for a major-final rematch on something other than Nadal’s dominant surface of clay (a surface on which Nadal has probably been better than anyone else has ever been on any surface).
A fortnight ago, no one could have seen this coming. Federer, now 35—older than any grand slam singles champion in the past 44 years, and slightly older than Andre Agassi was when he gamely battled Federer in the 2005 U.S. Open final—announced six months ago that he was skipping the U.S. Open and would be out of tennis for an extended stretch to give his injured left knee time to heal. This is his first tournament back. Nadal, now 30, has struggled with injuries for years and hadn’t so much as made it to the quarterfinals in any of the past six grand slam events. He hadn’t made it to the finals in any of the past 10 grand slam events.
Yet second-seeded Novak Djokovic lost in the second round and top-seeded Andy Murray lost in the fourth (both to unseeded players), opening up the draw. And the seventeenth-seeded Federer and ninth-seeded Nadal kept winning.
Both men showed their championship mettle in winning their semifinal matches. In an all-Swiss battle, Federer’s friend Stan Wawrinka seemed to have the upper hand in the fifth set before Stan blinked and Roger somehow pulled out the win. A day later, Grigor Dimitrov led Nadal 4-3 in the fifth and had two break points on Rafa’s serve. But Nadal held. Then Nadal broke. After Dimitrov staved off two match points, Nadal served his way into the final.
After defeating Wawrinka, Federer’s excitement at the thought of playing Nadal was palpable. Such is Federer’s love of the sport that he seemed to desire that matchup even though it almost surely means his own chances of winning are reduced. (While Federer is probably the greatest player of all-time, Nadal has been his kryptonite. The Swiss has failed to beat the Spaniard in a grand slam since the 2007 Wimbledon final, losing in six subsequent attempts.) In the on-court interview after the match, Jim Courier observed that Roger’s next opponent would be one of two players, and he started by asking about Dimitrov. Federer offered a few quick thoughts and then, unable to wait, said, “Or else it will be Rafa”—and smiled. (He went on to talk at length about his rival, saying he is perhaps Nadal’s “biggest fan.”)
The Federer-Nadal rivalry has long been so captivating for perhaps three main reasons: the two players’ sheer greatness; the wonderful sportsmanship they have consistently displayed toward each other; and their compelling contrasts in style. When the dapper Federer and the brawling Nadal take the court, it’s grace versus grit, variety versus power, righty versus lefty, the tennis maestro versus the human backboard.
Soon, either Federer will have won his eighteenth grand slam title (no one else has won more than 14) or else Nadal will have won his fifteenth and moved within a mere two of his greatest rival. Either way, tennis fans are in for a rare treat.
