The rivalry between Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal has transcended tennis and helped to take the sport to a new dimension, unknown before their arrival. The Swiss and the Spaniard represented the perfect contrast of styles on the tennis court and always respected each other by helping each other improve.
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Federer and Nadal would not have won so much without the presence of the other, although it may seem a paradox. The former Swiss champion had to improve his backhand to keep up with Rafa's pace from baseline, while the Spaniard worked on his serve and his net game to continue winning against his great rival.
The subsequent arrival of Novak Djokovic ushered in the era of the Big 3, which has no equal in the history of tennis. Despite Djokovic and Nadal facing each other 60 times, their rivalry is considered less iconic than that between Roger and Rafa. Some matches between the Swiss and the Spaniard are remembered as the best of the modern era, especially the epic final of the 2008 Wimbledon Championships. According to many fans and insiders, that final is the best match of all time.
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After struggling a lot against Nadal for most of his career, Federer overturned the inertia of their rivalry in the final years of his career. The 20-time Grand Slam champion defeated Rafa many times between 2015 and 2019, also beating him in the 2017 Australian Open final (the Swiss Maestro won that amazing clash in five sets).
Federer's message
Before the start of the Davis Cup Finals - the last official event of Nadal's career - a really beautiful message was sent by Federer.
In his message, King Roger recalled his rivalry with Rafa and paid him a truly incredible tribute. The former Swiss champion also recalled when Nadal invited him to his Academy in Mallorca in 2016.
"Im still grateful you invited me to Mallorca to help launch the Rafa Nadal Academy in 2016. Actually, I kind of invited myself. I knew you were too polite to insist on me being there, but I didnt want to miss it. You have always been a role model for kids around the world, and Mirka and I are so glad that our children have all trained at your academies," the Swiss wrote.
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"They had a blast and learned so muchlike thousands of other young players. Although I always worried my kids would come home playing tennis as lefties," he added.
"And then there was Londonthe Laver Cup in 2022. My final match. It meant everything to me that you were there by my sidenot as my rival but as my doubles partner. Sharing the court with you that night, and sharing those tears, will forever be one of the most special moments of my career," Federer concluded.
Federer played the last match of his career alongside Rafa at the 2022 Laver Cup, which took place at the O2 Arena in London. It was a truly incredible moment, in which they both burst into tears and further strengthened their relationship.
A new amazing rivalry
In some respects, the rivalry between these two legends seems likely to be replaced by that between Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner in the next 10-15 years. The Spaniard won 4 Grand Slam titles, while the Italian won 2 Major titles.
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The Spaniard and the Italian have already faced some truly memorable matches (like the 2022 US Open quarter-final) and seem to have the right skills to lead the next era of tennis. Their relationship is characterized by huge mutual respect and their styles on court are very different.
In a recent interview during the Nitto ATP Finals, Alcaraz and Sinner said that it is still too early to compare their rivalry with 'Fedal': "The last couple of years, they are gonna think that we are gonna be the next top two guys who are gonna dominate the game. But right now I see a lot of players, the draws are really really open," the Spaniard explained.
Jannik answered: "We are not looking to march forward and I think it's not comparable to what the Big 3 have done, and the Big 4 with Andy Murray. Talking from my side, I just had one season like this. How they made it in 15, 20 years. I don't think it's comparable at all."
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The rivalry between Roger and Rafa has become epic mainly thanks to their finals in Grand Slam tournaments, while Carlitos and Jannik have never faced each other in the final in the most important tournaments on the calendar. The hope of fans and insiders is that these two young champions will face each other in the last act of a Major tournament in 2025.
