So that’s it. It wasn’t quite a classic, but it was certainly compelling. Federer ultimately made his attacking superiority tell, not least on serve, with his reward a sixth title of the year and a seventh in Basel. The Swiss is now just six title wins behind second-placed Ivan Lendl in the open era (88 to 94). Nadal, meanwhile, stays on three tournament victories for the year, but seems to be making steady progress at the end of what has been a chequered season by his standards. Until next time.
Federer delivers a virtuoso linguistic performance, congratulating Nadal in English before switching to German and French. Is there no end to the man’s talents?
Rafa congratulates Federer on a great week’s work. “I hope we keep playing finals like this in the future,” he says, casting a smile in the direction of his old foe. “It’s been a fantastic week for me.” He thanks the crowd for their support throughout the week before adding: “Today a little bit less, but I understand.” Cue much amusement in the stands.
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Speaking in commentary, the former Wimbledon doubles champion Ian Fleming hails Nadal’s performance as his best of the year. It remains to be seen whether the Spaniard concurs with that assessment, but it was certainly an outstanding match from both men. Federer hit 44 winners in all, making just 32 unforced errors despite forcing the play throughout. That was his seventh title in Basel, an extraordinary record. Rafa likewise produced more winners than unforced errors (21 to 20), and he can take heart from a tenacious performance on a surface that was always going to leave him second favourite.
Federer wins the third set to claim the title 6-3, 5-7, 6-3!
Third set: Nadal* 3-6, 7-5, 3-6 Federer (*denotes server)
Despite an admirable display of defiance from Rafa, who twice thwarts Federer as the Swiss makes his way forward, the defending champion is not to be denied. An ace at 30-30 brings up match point, and although Rafa saves it with a return that kisses the line, a winning volley sets up another chance and Federer makes no mistake. Nadal fails to control a big serve, driving his return beyond the baseline, and a triumphant Federer roars in delight.
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Third set: Nadal* 3-6, 7-5, 3-5 Federer (*denotes server)
Federer’s backhand has improved markedly since he started working with Stefan Edberg, and it seems doubtful that’s a coincidence. The Swede had one of the best backhands to have graced the sport, and the single-handed drive unleashed by Federer at 0-15 in this game would bear comparison with just about anyone. It isn’t enough to break Rafa’s spirit, but it certainly gives the Swiss a platform to reach deuce, and from there he makes no mistake. Nadal drives a backhand long on break point, and Federer will serve for the match.
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Third set: Nadal 3-6, 7-5, 3-4 Federer* (*denotes server)
Some vintage Nadal. The Spaniard narrowly fails to make what would have been an electrifying forehand pass on the opening point before drawing a mishit from Federer with a big return. But it’s the next point that really catches the eye, with Nadal retrieving impressively before flicking a beauty of a topspin lob over Federer. It is as far as it goes for Nadal, but he’s now making an impression on the Federer serve in a way he wasn’t when this match started. We’re shaping up for quite a finale here, it would seem.
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Third set: Nadal* 3-6, 7-5, 3-3 Federer (*denotes server)
Despite a slightly hairy moment when he sends down a double-fault, Nadal matches his old foe step for step with a solid hold. The match is fascinatingly poised now.
Third set: Nadal 3-6, 7-5, 2-3 Federer* (*denotes server)
Federer steadies the ship with a love hold. Easy, this tennis lark, isn’t it?
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Third set: Nadal* 3-6, 7-5, 2-2 Federer (*denotes server)
Nadal opens the game with a penetrating first serve that draws a mid-court return from Federer. The Spaniard is on to it in a flash, slamming away a forehand off the short ball, but a missed drive off the same wing at 30-15 gives Federer hope, as does a surprise double fault that yields a break point. The brittle Nadal of a few months ago might have faltered, but this is a renascent Rafa. A wonderful backhand pass, driven beyond the incoming Federer at an acute angle, gets him back to deuce. He follows up with another backhand winner, and moments later he seals a vital hold.
Third set: Nadal 3-6, 7-5, 1-2 Federer* (*denotes server)
At 30-0, a scrambling Nadal narrowly fails to find the court after conjuring a magical, hooked forehand beyond the Swiss. It doesn’t halt Federer’s march to another thoroughly convincing hold, but it’s a further warning shot across the bows for the home favourite.
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Third set: Nadal* 3-6, 7-5, 1-1 Federer (*denotes server)
There’s a positivity and a swagger about Nadal now that should be ringing alarm bells in the Federer camp. He holds to love, sealing the game with a big forehand, and we now have a real contest on our hands.
Third set: Nadal* 3-6, 7-5, 0-1 Federer (*denotes server)
Federer hit 20 winners in the second set to Nadal’s six, but he also made twice as many unforced errors, with 14 to the Spaniard’s seven. Will he be dwelling on such statistics? Doubtful. He’ll probably be more focused on sauntering through his service games, which is exactly what he does here. Again.
Nadal wins the second set 7-5!
Second set: Nadal* 3-6, 7-5 Federer (*denotes server)
We’re all square! Nadal, the bit well and truly between his teeth, races to 40-0 before thumping away an overhead to claim the second set. That’ll be encouraging for the Spaniard, who showed no signs of faltering at a vital moment as he has done on several occasions this year. Is Rafa back? It’s way too soon to say so, but winning this match would be a major step forward for the Spaniard.
Second set: Nadal 3-6, 6-5 Federer* (*denotes server)
Finally, a breakthrough for Rafa to end the one-way traffic. A keenly contested point at 15-15 ends with Federer striking that familiar, free-flowing backhand into the doubles alley. The problem for Nadal is that there have been way too few keenly contested points on the Federer serve. But never mind that because, having gained a foothold in the game, the Spaniard refuses to let go. Hanging tough from the back, he draws a forehand error from Federer at 30-30 before pulling him hither and thither on break point. Lunging to his right, Federer can only slice a forehand limply into the net, and Nadal has the break.
Second set: Nadal 3-6, 5-5 Federer* (*denotes server)
An artfully constructed point at 0-15 draws a quiet fist pump from Nadal, who slots away a short volley after working his way forward behind some heavy groundstrokes. He doesn’t concede another point, wrapping up the game with a trademark forehand winner, and he’s still very much in this. The challenge will be making an impression against the Federer serve.
Second set: Nadal 3-6, 4-5 Federer* (*denotes server)
Against any other opponent, a magnificent forehand winner from Nadal, struck clean out of the centre of the racket while running at full pelt, might have ignited a spark of inspiration. But this is Roger Federer, and he’s a serving machine. Two more aces whistle down, and any flicker of optimism Nadal might have felt is quickly snuffed out. He’ll have to serve to stay in it.
Second set: Nadal 3-6, 4-4 Federer* (*denotes server)
With the crowd getting behind their man – albeit in the quietly understated manner one might expect from a Swiss audience – Federer makes it to 30-30 on the Nadal serve. That’s as far as he gets, though, as the Spaniard sends down two meaty serves to see out the game.
Second set: Nadal 3-6, 3-4 Federer* (*denotes server)
Another swift and summary service game from Roger. Nadal is having to work like the proverbial Trojan to hold, while Federer is whistling through his own service games. It can’t be much fun for the Spaniard, who must feel he is fighting a constant uphill battle. And you know what? He is.
Second set: Nadal* 3-6, 3-3 Federer (*denotes server)
At 30-30, and after some determined scrambling from Nadal, Federer unleashes another sequence of huge groundstrokes. The sheer pace seems to mess with Nadal’s timing, and he surrenders the point with a shanked forehand. Rafa recovers, redoubling his work rate to see out the game, but he is constantly on the back foot, with Federer exerting relentless pressure.
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Second set: Nadal 3-6, 2-3 Federer* (*denotes server)
As has been the case for so much of this year, Federer is too hot to handle on serve. It simply has everything: pace, variety, placement and unpredictability. The Swiss may be 34 but, if he can maintain the quality of that delivery, he’ll remain a force to be reckoned with for a good while yet.
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Second set: Nadal* 3-6, 2-2 Federer (*denotes server)
There’s a determined look about Nadal as he backs up a heavy body serve with a punishing forehand to wrap up another hold. It was important for him to stay with Federer in the opening couple of games of this set. Let’s see what he can do from here.
Second set: Nadal 3-6, 1-2 Federer* (*denotes server)
As Nadal fires a return wide, Federer clinches another convincing hold. On this form, he’ll take some stopping at the ATP Tour finals. As for Rafa, he called for the trainer at the change of ends, getting some strapping applied to his right knee. Let’s hope that familiar injury isn’t rearing its head again.
Second set: Nadal* 3-6, 1-1 Federer (*denotes server)
Better from Rafa, who refuses to let some more big hitting from Federer disturb his focus. Nadal is rewarded for maintaining a better length when Federer goes long with a forehand to bring up 40-15. But there is no let-up from the Swiss, who launches a successful net-rush routine before a netted forehand takes us back to deuce. Some solid serving gets Rafa over the line, though, and that hold will have done him a power of good.
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Second set: Nadal 3-6, 0-1 Federer* (*denotes server)
Federer picks up from where he left off at the end of the previous set, punctuating a quick hold by blasting a forehand winner down the line on game point. The next game promises to be vital for Nadal; he simply has to hold.
Federer wins the first set 6-3!
First set: Nadal* 3-6 Federer (*denotes server)
Federer rips a winner to seal the set at 30-40, marking the moment with a cry of “Come on!” It was the Swiss maestro’s 16th winner of the set. Nadal managed just six. That, combined with a first-serve percentage of just 47% for the Spaniard, goes a long way to explaining Federer’s dominance so far.
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First set: Nadal 3-5 Federer* (*denotes server)
At 40-15, Nadal shows just how he could trouble Federer here, using a solid return to work his way into the net on the backhand of the Swiss, who sends his attempted pass well long. But at 40-30, Nadal demonstrates how he could just as easily fall to a bruising defeat by dumping a forehand half way up the net. It’s happened far too often this year, and it’s something the Spaniard needs to solve if he is to reclaim a place at the game’s top table.
First set: Nadal* 3-4 Federer (*denotes server)
Whatever the outcome here, Nadal will be grateful for the additional ranking points after missing this phase of the season last year. Speaking of points, the Spaniard – who holds handily here but still trails by a break – has now won one more than Federer.
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First set: Nadal 2-4 Federer* (*denotes server)
The challenge Nadal faces here, as always when these two face off indoors, lies in the need to stay aggressive against an opponent to whom out-and-out attack comes far more naturally. The Spaniard makes a valiant effort, carving out a break point with a magnificent two-handed pass, and when he races in behind a vicious approach shot he looks to be a simple volley away from restoring parity. Federer, though, has other ideas, flashing a cross-court forehand winner at an improbable angle. Just for good measure, he follows up with a wicked body serve that jams the Nadal backhand and a heavy, kicking delivery that rears up like the proverbial mule. Six games gone and already the Spaniard looks to have his work cut out.
First set: Nadal* 2-3 Federer (*denotes server)
Testing times for Rafa, who sees a vicious forehand winner sail beyond his reach before almost getting nailed at the net. He recovers well to reach 30-30, but some brutal hitting from Federer sets up an easy backhand volley for the Swiss. Nadal finds the corner with a two-hander to save the break point, but poor length at deuce hands Federer the initiative again. Nadal remains obdurate, drawing a mishit from his opponent after an extended rally, but Federer produces two moments of sheer brilliance to secure the break. A rapier-like backhand drive – it flashes across the court before Nadal can so much as twitch – brings up break point, and the Swiss follows that by hammering a forehand winner down the line. First blood to Federer.
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First set: Nadal 2-2 Federer* (*denotes server)
A double fault suggests Federer isn’t entirely comfortable on serve as yet, but there’s still enough in the tank to secure a comfortable hold.
First set: Nadal* 2-1 Federer (*denotes server)
The much-discussed SABR – surprise attack by Roger – makes a fleeting appearance here, but the attempted chip-and-charge lands in the bottom of the net. Not too much to worry Rafa there, who sees out another comfortable hold with a big forehand.
First set: Nadal 1-1 Federer* (*denotes server)
Interesting. At 40-15, Federer elects to stay back. A brief exchange ensues, which ends with the Swiss netting a backhand. A double fault follows and, after ballooning another backhand long, Federer finds himself facing a break point. He saves it with aplomb, launching a huge first serve down the middle and following up with a trademark forehand winner, but it’s a reminder – in a year when Federer has been all but unbreakable unless facing Novak Djokovic – that he needs to stay aggressive. Nadal has traditionally made hay against Federer by launching a sustained attack on his opponent’s backhand; on this surface, where he has less time to set up and run around his two-hander, those assaults should be harder for Nadal to orchestrate.
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First set: Nadal* 1-0 Federer (*denotes server)
A solid start from Rafa, who holds to 15 courtesy of a lovely backhand pass, driven down the line beyond the reach of the onrushing Federer. The Spaniard will doubtless be posed similar questions throughout this match, because Federer will surely be looking to come in at every opportunity.
Roger ambles off his chair, a picture of cool composure as ever. Rafa, predictably, cuts a busier figure, bouncing his way to the baseline from where he will get us underway. Excited? So you should be.
Federer, the top seed, came through his semi-final against the talented young American Jack Sock with something to spare, cruising to a 6-3, 6-4 win. Nadal also won in straight sets, although his 6-4, 7-6 victory against Richard Gasquet was a less comfortable affair, with the Spaniard forced to battle back from 4-2 down in the opening set.
The players have just emerged on to the court, with Nadal receiving a warm ovation despite the presence of Federer, who has the status of royalty in these parts. Good to see. Still, it’s easy to be generous when your man is going for a seventh victory at an event he has been playing since he was 17.
Hello and welcome
The bare facts of a rivalry that has perhaps defined the careers of both Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal barely begin to tell the story. Nadal may have won the previous five meetings between the two, not to mention all but 10 of the 33 matches they have contested since the Spaniard first got the better of Federer as a largely unheralded 17-year-old back in 2004. Novak Djokovic may have elbowed both men aside with his remarkable dominance of the men’s game over the past 12 months. And, come the final reckoning, the Serb’s rivalry with Nadal – the most prolific of the open era as well as one of the closest, this year’s results notwithstanding, with Nadal leading by a single victory over the course of their 45 encounters – may well have the greater bearing on which of the three men comes to be regarded as the greatest player of all time. But make no mistake, Federer-Nadal remains one of the most evocative match-ups in world sport, a fact that naturally owes much to that epic final they contested at Wimbledon in 2008.
Today’s contest, in the final of the Swiss Indoors in Basel, has been a long time in the making. Not since early 2014, when Nadal saw off the Swiss maestro in straight sets in the Australian Open semi-finals, have the two men crossed rackets. Much has changed in the interim. Had Nadal won the final he subsequently contested in Melbourne against Stan Wawrinka, he would now be within two grand slam titles of Federer’s 17-strong haul. Instead, hampered by a back injury and the extraordinary shotmaking of an inspired Wawrinka, he slipped to a four-set defeat and – victory at that year’s French Open aside – has barely been the same player since, sliding down the rankings amid faltering form and confidence. Federer, meanwhile, whose glittering career looked to be nearing an end a couple of years ago, has re-emerged as a major force this year, with only the excellence of Djokovic denying him in the Wimbledon and US Open finals.
After a difficult year, Nadal has shown signs of resurgence since his disastrous Wimbledon exit to the qualifier Dustin Brown, winning in Hamburg and reaching the final in Beijing and the last four at the Shanghai Masters. Nonetheless, Federer, the world No2, goes into this match as a clear favourite. He will doubtless enjoy the partisan backing of a raucous crowd, and the slick indoor surface should play into the hands of the Swiss.
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