By Randy Walker
In a match played at a high intensity from the first strike of the ball, Rafael Nadal defeated Roger Federer 6-4, 7-6 (5) Sunday to win the Madrid Masters in the first meeting between the top two tennis titans in 12 months. The win for Nadal avenges his 6-4, 6-4 loss to Federer in the Madrid final in 2009, the last time that the two players met on a tennis court.
The title was his record 18th tournament victory at a Masters Series event – moving him ahead of Andre Agassi and his 17 Masters Series titles. It also marked his 39th singles title of his career and his 28th career title on clay. Nadal’s win keeps the Mallorocan undefeated on clay so far in 2010, having won titles in Monte Carlo and Rome. He will look to win his fourth title at Roland Garros in Paris – and unseat Federer as the reigning French champion.
“I have been unbeaten in this stadium for almost two years now. It was a wonderful tournament and I wish I could have defended my title,” Federer said following the loss.
Both players jumped out of the gate like gang busters, knowing that there is little margin between victory and defeat and even mistakes made in the opening stages of the match can be the difference between winning and losing. The match was played with much anticipation and with much interest from the sports world. Olympic gold medal-winning skier Lindsey Vonn, an avid fan of Federer, tweeted “OMG this is horrible, I’m at a sports restaurant and they r showing every sport except tennis & don’t even have the Tennis channel! Aahhh!!!”
The two titans had not clashed in exactly a year, equaling the longest period the two have gone without playing – matching the one year period between their first and second meetings at the 2004 and 2005 Sony Ericson Opens.
The rivalry began on March 28, 2004 when Nadal, then an aspiring 17-year-old, took down the world No. 1 Federer 6-3, 6-3 in the third round of Key Biscayne – then labeled as the NASDAQ-100 Open. As outlined in my book ON THIS DAY IN TENNIS HISTORY ($19.95, www.TennisHistoryBook.com), Nadal was the youngest man in the tournament field and said following the match, “I played almost perfect tennis.” Federer’s loss was only his second in 25 matches in the 2004 season and predicted great things for the young Spaniard. “He hit some really incredible shots, and that’s what youngsters do. I’ve heard a lot about him and saw some of his matches, so this is not a big surprise.”
Their current head-to-head sits at 14-7 in favor of Nadal.
Rene Stauffer, the author of the book THE ROGER FEDERER STORY: QUEST FOR PERFECTION ($24.95 New Chapter Press, www.RogerFedererBook.com) discusses Federer’s first match with Nadal – and that period in his career, in his book excerpt below.
The 2004 season was turning into a triumphal march for Federer. He was celebrated wherever he appeared. His results continued to be worthy of a world No. 1. His first defeat of the year—and in manner of three months—came in mid-February, when he lost to Tim Henman in the quarterfinals of Rotterdam. He quickly regained form and successfully defended his title in Dubai, defeating the Spainard Feliciano Lopez in the final. At the Tennis Masters Series event in Indian Wells, Federer avenged his loss to Henman in the championship match and realized his first “countable” victory against another of his early nemeses. The win over Henman was only his second in eight matches, with Federer’s only previous win over the Brit in Key Biscayne in 2002 being decided when Henman was forced to quit after one set due to a stiff neck. His victory, therefore, was especially satisfying. “Now I believe that no opponent has a psychological advantage over me,” he said.
An opponent that would bring Federer to his knees, however, appeared shortly after Indian Wells—illness. Immediately after the final, Federer began to run a fever and suffer from nausea and muscle pains. Despite his illness, he did not cancel his pre-arranged trip to Portland, Ore., the home of his clothing sponsor “Nike,” for a promotional visit, but en route to Miami for the next tournament, Federer was forced to stop and check into an airport hotel in Los Angeles to rest and try to recover. As he and Mirka finally arrived in Florida, he considered withdrawing from the tournament, but when rain gave him an extra day of rest, he decided to give it a go.
After he was able to muster up enough strength to negotiate a three-set win in his first match against No. 54-ranked Nikolay Davydenko of Russia, Federer next drew the highly-regarded Spaniard Rafael Nadal. The 17-year-old left-hander from Mallorca played what he described at the time as the best match of his life and dominated the listless Federer 6-3, 6-3. The loss was the most decisive defeat Federer experienced in a year. Nadal also became the youngest player to defeat the Wimbledon champion. Federer was not surprised that he lost since he was not yet recovered from his illness. Nonetheless, he suspected that Nadal would be a dangerous rival coming of age. “He will become the most powerful left-hander in tennis in the coming years,” Federer prophesized.