You can’t understand Nadal without Federer. And Federer without Christmas. The two have starred in one of the most beautiful rivalries in the history of the sport, although in recent years a third man sat at the same table, Novak Djokovic. Before the arrival of the Serb, tennis was his thing. Nadal always winning at Roland Garros, Federer at Wimbledon. And sharing successes on the fast track.
“I wish this day had never come”, said Nadal yesterday when he learned that his rival for so many years is leaving the racket. Federer is five years older, but his decision surely stirred a Nadal who, at 36 years old, also suffers from many physical problems. Both players have always been showered with praise. Federer was the rival to beat, the man who spurred a Christmas that eventually surpassed him in Grand Slam tournaments won. The Swiss achieved 20 and Nadal already has 22, although the Manacorí has won 92 tournaments in his career, less than Federer’s 103. Nadal has won 24 of the 40 duels they have played, including 14 of the 24 finals.
The good relationship between the two has translated into gestures like the one in 2016, when Nadal inaugurated his academy at a time when both were injured. “I would like to teach tennis to young players and I would like to do it at the Rafa Academy”, the player from Basel, who has not created his own academy, has declared in the past. “If any of my children wanted to play tennis, I would certainly send them there,” Federer said in 2019 in reference to the Nadal project. The last match played between the two was in one of the semi-finals at Wimbledon in 2019, in which Federer won 7-6, 1-6, 6-3, 6-4. It was one of the last great matches of a Federer already veteran and martyred by injuries. In fact, he would lose the tournament final that year to Djokovic. The Swiss already understood then that it would be difficult to win a major tournament again. It was his last final. Now Nadal will be alongside Federer at the Rod Laver Cup on the Swiss’ farewell day. A tournament where they can be teammates, playing together. An ideal ending.
