Australian Open: Roger Federer-Rafael Nadal rivalry in five matches
Updated
Not many would have tipped the 2017 Australian Open to mark the return of Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal to the biggest stage.
Federer v Nadal
- Head to head: 34 matches since 2004 — Nadal leads 23-11
- At slams: Nadal leads 9-2
- At Aus Open: Nadal leads 3-0 (2009 final, 2012 and 2014 semis)
- In finals: Nadal leads 14-7
- On hard court: Nadal leads 9-7
In over a decade, this pair has clashed 34 times and Nadal has utterly dominated the match-up, winning 23 times.
The top spin and bazooka-like power of his left arm turned Federer's majestic one-handed backhand into a cap gun by comparison.
That, combined with impossible speed and athleticism, made it seem like he was tailor-made to nullify the grace of Fed.
But Federer is in the midst of a stunning resurgence and Nadal has slowed down a bit, so who will win this latest chapter in their historic rivalry?
We look back through five matches between the pair to tell the tale of their war thus far.
2004 Miami Masters third round
Nadal won 6-3, 6-3
When these two great competitors crossed paths for the first time, Nadal was 17 years old and Federer already had two majors to his name.
Although no-one knew how much the Spaniard would dominate the rivalry in years to come, it was clear he had a game to trouble the newly minted world number one.
While Nadal would not win his first grand slam until the following year's French Open, he had made perhaps his biggest impact on the tour by taking down the best player in the world.
2007 Wimbledon final
Federer won 7-6(10/7), 4-6, 7-6(7/3), 2-6, 6-2
Having powered past Nadal in the 2006 decider, 2007 painted a picture of how quickly Nadal was coming for the big man, even on grass.
It two tiebreaks and five sets for Federer to stop the charge from Nadal, but it would prove the last time the old dog would take down the young pup in a major.
2008 French Open final
Nadal won 6-1, 6-3, 6-0
Federer had lost to Nadal at the French Open for three straight years but the 2008 tournament was not the time to turn it around.
The Swiss threw everything at Nadal but came up with next to nothing as he was completely trounced in his only straight-sets loss in a major final.
2008 Wimbledon final
Nadal won 6-4, 6-4, 6-7(5/7), 6-7(8/10), 9-7
OK, so maybe beating Nadal on clay was too much to ask, but surely El Toro couldn't come to Federer's turf and mug him ... right?
Wrong. Having struggled with mono, lost his Australian Open title to Novak Djokovic and been thwarted again at Roland Garros, a return to the zippy grass at Wimbledon was supposed to be a return to winning form, but it was not to be.
Nadal took the first two sets and Federer took the next two in tiebreaks before Spaniard won the decider 9-7 after almost five hours. Making matters worse, Federer was also replaced by Nadal at the top of the rankings a month later then suffered a back injury after winning the US Open.
Safe to say it was a bad year for the maestro.
2015 Swiss Indoors final
Federer won 6-3, 5-7, 6-3
An indoor title in Switzerland is hardly what Federer or Nadal will be remembered for, but it is the most recent meeting between the pair.
It was on a hard court in 2015 and, while Basel is far from a major final, both players definitely wanted to win and Federer weathered the storm from Nadal to win in three tough sets.
This pair is closer now in terms of ability than they have been in a long time and if their most recent outing is anything to go by, Sunday's decider could be one for the ages, and not just because of the names involved.
Topics: tennis, australian-open, sport, melbourne-3000, australia, spain, switzerland
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