“We talk to each other regularly,” Rafael Nadal opens up on his relationship with Roger Federer post the Swiss maestro’s retirement
Rafael Nadal has opened up how close Roger Federer is to him even after the Swiss Maestro retired from professional tennis.
Follow Us
Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal
Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal – The “Fedal” rivalry is one of the most talked about topics in the history of the entire sport. Two of the greatest players of all time have completely changed the history of the game followed by the Serbian Great Novak Djokovic. Despite battling out in the most difficult and important matches throughout their careers, the relationship between Federer and Nadal was always a specimen of utmost sportsman spirit and brotherhood.
Rafael Nadal has now opened up on his relationship with the Swiss Maestro post the latter’s retirement, “He is happy, enjoying life. We talk to each other regularly. When someone like Federer leaves, it’s hard not to be emotional. I’m happy for him because at least he was able to retire being on the court.“
Rafael Nadal who is 5 years younger than Federer came into the spotlight when he defeated Roger Federer in the 2004 Miami Masters third round. He single-handedly stopped the one-man show of the Swiss Maestro at the top of the tennis world in the initial years.
Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal – The fedal rivalry
There was a time when Roger Federer was invincible and he was ruling the tennis courts all over the world. The peak he had between 2004 and 2007 still makes him relevant in the GOAT debate despite going below Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic in most of the stats.
Federer won 3 out of 4 Australian Open titles, won all 4 Wimbledon titles and US open titles between 2004 and 2007. That is 11 out of 16 slams won in four years. 3 of the slams Federer lost in this period were against Nadal in the French Opens. Nadal came like he was designed in a lab to beat Federer.
It seemed like Nadal was a secret project to take down Federer. He single-handedly stopped the dominance of the Swiss legend. The ‘Fedal’ rivalry took a new high when Federer finally defeated Nadal in a Grand slam match in the 2017 Australian Open final.
He had to wait for 10 years to finally beat Nadal in a slam match after 2007 Wimbledon final and the first time he solved the Nadal puzzle outside a grass court on a slam match.
Their head-to-head still favors Nadal 24-16 overall and 10-4 in slam matches but Federer coped up with Nadal during the final years and beat him in 2 out of their last 3 slam matches.
Stay Updated!
Vipul Payattuparambil
(552 Articles Published)