Roger Federer, along with Rafa Nadal and Novak Djokovic, at 02 in London. /
goodbye to a legend
Federer says goodbye to tennis at the Laver Cup in London surrounded by Nadal, his friend and great rival, whom he faced for the first time in 2004
The first time that Roger Federer and Rafa Nadal met on a tennis court was in Miami in 2004. The first final between the two was also in Miami, a year later. His first duel in a Grand Slam was at Roland Garros 2005, also the scene of his first final in a major, a year later. His most uneven game was the final in Paris in 2008; the most epic, Wimbledon 2008; the most emotional, that of Australia 2017. The last, the one they played this Friday at the O2 in London, in a Laver Cup ready to celebrate Federer’s goodbye and in which Nadal acted as a squire and friend of the Swiss.
It was the moment everyone had been waiting for since Federer announced his retirement just a few days ago. However, the tournament and the players themselves kept it a secret until the announcement, just 24 hours before the doubles match of the Swiss teaming up with the Balearic player in the match that closed the first day of the competition between the team from Europe and that of the rest of the world.
The image of both on the track was preceded by compliments at the press conference. “It’s going to be super special to be with Rafa,” Federer said. “He is perfection personified,” Nadal replied. The hours before the Swiss professional tennis farewell were also featured by the photographs of both in the presentations and parties prior to the London tournament. A ‘selfie’ on the Thames, the two of them in suits at a gala… The Laver Cup, despite its exhibition and practically friendly nature, gives tennis players the unique feeling of living as a team within a completely competitive sport and in which only the Davis Cup can be compared.
And Federer and Nadal took it to its peak, repeating the scene that was already experienced in Prague, in 2017, and that paralyzed the sport. Never before have these two geniuses shared the same part of the track. Their rivalry, one of the greatest in history – only surpassed by Djokovic-Nadal and Djokovic-Federer – has made them face each other 40 times, with a wide advantage for the Spaniard, who won 26 times against only 14 defeats for the Spanish.
The epic clash of styles
Federer managed to make up in his final years a deficit that reached 23-10 in mid-2015, but in the books he will be behind Nadal in finals (14-10), semifinals (7-4), quarterfinals ( 2-0), in Grand Slam matches (10-4) and on clay (14-2). Federer only dominates him on grass (3-1) and on cement (11-9), the latter thanks to his splendid 2017. The Swiss leaves with the feeling that he could never defeat him at Roland Garros (6-0), while that Nadal did beat him at Wimbledon (2008). In the Australian Open Nadal also dominated (3-1), while in the US Open curiously they never faced each other.
During the years of rivalry they cultivated a friendly relationship, with their little friction in sports matters, but which has always been characterized by respect. This, together with the epic clash of styles, of the young man from the Balearic Islands who came to dethrone the Swiss maestro, contributed to the creation of the legend and that the most special farewell was with Nadal.
The man from Manacor, awaiting the birth of his first child, accepted the invitation, went to London and supported Federer at the closing of one of the most important races not only in the history of tennis, but of sport. Federer is gone, he is gone, but he leaves the mark of a legend that will continue to be present on every tennis court. His story is parallel to that of tennis and they will continue to live together no matter how much the Swiss figure hangs up his racket.
