It’s still a living and breathing story, which adds to its potency. I’ve never seen such sustained involvement in a tennis match. Prelude to a decade of ongoing accomplishments that aren't yet ended.That 2008 Wimbledon final was a conflict at once majestic and brutal, a riveting study in contrasts, with the aesthetics reflecting the deep elemental differences between the men: Rafa, the beach bum in his "pirata" pants and sleeveless shirt, lashing out topspin shots with abandon.
When a fan cried out: “C’mon, Roger,” during his backswing, Federer turned and shouted: “Shut up!” This, Nadal wrote, “is not Roger’s style at all”.Nadal waited it out. But of course, in that moment, that final has been a very important step forward for me in my career. His average serve time in the final was 30 seconds. More kickoff than final whistle. Nadal did it at the second attempt. He, like Federer, always answers politely. “There is a difference between ‘who is better’ and ‘who knows more’,” said Nadal’s coach, mentor and uncle, Toni Nadal. ".Initially, Nadal's power trumped Federer's artistry, as he eased to a two-set lead. I remember the passing shot down the line.
“Blowing my chance in the fourth had made me stronger, not weaker. But he flopped in Australia and France, and now was on the verge of a Wimbledon thumping. Find out more,The Telegraph values your comments but kindly requests all posts are on topic, constructive and respectful.
Federer had in 2008 zijn voorseizoen op Roland Garros afgestemd, maar verloor de finale met 6-1, 6-3 en 6-0. But why not? Federer had won not only both previous meetings, but had also been the,Nadal, on the other hand, had just won the,Although the players were due on court at 14:00 BST, rain delayed the start of the match by about 35 minutes. That's about all they had in common when they lined up to play the 1975 final.Ashe was older and wiser, Connors was younger and brasher, their polarising personalities and contrasting careers teeing up a narrative which had sports fans hooked.Connors, 22, was the hot favourite after winning three of the four Grand Slams and losing just four times in 103 matches during the previous year.Yet it was the wily Ashe - after concocting a plan over blackjack in a Mayfair club to get under Connors' skin - who triumphed.This was a final which turned out to be the defining moment of each man's career.Becker, unseeded and aged 17, became Wimbledon's youngest men's champion, the launchpad that rocketed him to superstar status.Curren, seeded eighth and the overwhelming favourite, saw a concrete opportunity to earn Wimbledon immortality slip through his grasp.
We were wrong.Federer, approaching his 38th birthday and in pursuit of a ninth Wimbledon title, had enough gas left in the tank to push top seed Djokovic to a fifth set - and then the drama went up another notch.The Swiss was unable to convert two match points at 8-7 in the decider, which then went to a historic tie-break at 12-12.Djokovic took control to hold three Championship points, taking the first when Federer spooned a return. Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, the world's No.
The reality is that players are perpetually forward-looking, wiping losses off the hard drive once they wring out what might be learned and put to use from them. “When Federer has these patches of utter brilliance, the only thing you can do is try and stay calm, wait for the storm to pass.”.Federer, Nadal remembered, was “more worked up than I remembered seeing him”. He wanted to “break that easy rhythm of his, push him to the edge” to “frustrate him, drive him close to despair”.They were late on court, because of a shower. And then, eventually, I realised there’s something good to take out of these situations. What a pair of absolute champions. “We shook hands, nodded, exchanged the faintest of smiles,” Nadal remembered, “and stepped over to our respective lockers, maybe 10 paces away from each other, and then pretended the other wasn’t there.”.For three years, Nadal had been stuck behind Federer in the rankings. It is 10 years since the two titans met for the third in a trilogy of finals at SW19 and served up what Björn Borg described as ‘the best tennis match I’ve ever seen in my life’,Just ask McEnroe, who commentated on it – “The greatest match I’ve ever seen” – or Borg, who watched it from the royal box: “That’s the best tennis match I’ve ever seen in my life. “At one stage I thought this match would never end,” says Maria.