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Federer will relish rivalry with Nadal
(Reuters)
Updated: 2006-03-07 08:53
In the biography "On being John McEnroe" the American admits the premature
retirement of Borg left a vacuum that no other rival could fill, not even
Connors.
Rafael Nadal of Spain bites his trophy after
defeating Roger Federer of Switzerland in their final match at the Dubai
Open tennis tournament in United Arab Emirates March 4, 2006.
[Reuters] | His respect for the Swede led him to try, unsuccessfully, to lure him back to
the circuit.
So, while 19-year-old French Open champion Nadal was tearfully collecting his
trophy in Dubai at the weekend, Federer stood at courtside, already plotting
revenge.
The Swiss, who many feel is the greatest player ever to wield a racket, knows
that the French Open, the only major to elude him, will prove his greatest
challenge.
He probably would have won it last year, only to get trampled by the
marauding Spaniard in an intense semi-final.
He also lost to Nadal in Miami in 2004 and his only success against him came,
also in Miami, a year later when he recovered from a two-set deficit to claim
the title.
The game comes so easy for Federer that he can beat top-10 grand slam winners
like Lleyton Hewitt and Andy Roddick with cruise control switched on.
Nadal is different. So far, at least, Federer has not worked out a way to
counter the fizzing topspin and sheer tenacity of the Mallorcan matador.
"It's not easy being expected to win all the time," Federer said after losing
in Dubai. "But I'm happy with my game and it gives me something to look forward
to when I play him again."
For his part, Nadal keeps up his mantra that Federer is untouchable as world
number one, although it is unlikely that he really believes that.
The bristling, bad-tempered showdowns of the Eighties might be asking a
little too much, such is the obvious rapport between the world's top two
players.
However, if they end up on opposite sides of the net on a regular basis this
year, and barring injuries that will surely happen, tennis fans will be in for
some epic showdowns.
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