Face of Nation : It’s the fairytale match 11 years in the making but a stunning admission from Rafael Nadal means that it might very well be close to one of the last times he and Roger Federer clash at a Grand Slam.
The last time Federer and Nadal collided at Wimbledon, more than a decade ago, the final was labelled one of the greatest matches of all time as Nadal triumphed 6-4 6-4 6-7 (5-7) 6-7 (10-8) 9-7.
It was the first of Nadal’s two Wimbledon crowns but now the pair are much different players, something Federer acknowledged as Nadal has become less of a grinder, changed his serve and looks to end points a little quicker than he used to.
“Rafa really can hurt anybody on any surface,” said Federer. “He’s serving way different. I remember back in the day how he used to serve, and now how much bigger he’s serving, how much faster he finishes points.”
For Nadal that is for several reasons but most importantly he is trying to take the strain off his creaky knees — but he’s also extremely happy to be back in the semi-finals, against his long-time nemesis as they get set for their 40th career match.
“I am serving better. I am hitting the backhand better. Maybe volleying better, slicing better.”
The two most successful men’s performers in Grand Slam history will be going head-to-head at a major for the 14th time.
But in a first at Wimbledon, Federer and Nadal won’t be playing for the trophy — not that, that changes too much, or reduces the stakes.“We have a lot of information on Rafa, as does he on us,” Federer said.
“So you can dive into the tactics like mad for two days, or you say ‘it’s grass court tennis so I’m going to come out and play my tennis’. “People always hype it up. It was a joy to play against Rafa again on his court at the French Open (last month) and I’m very excited to play him here.”
After five consecutive losses to Federer starting from their 2017 Australian Open final, Nadal finally turned the tables on the 20-times major winner with a straight-sets success at Roland Garros en route to his 18th grand slam triumph.
Nadal, 33, leads 37-year-old Federer 24-15 head-to-head, but Federer said past results counted for nothing now. “Who cares. It’s about how has he played so far, how have I played so far. I hope it goes my way,” Federer said.
