The year was 2006 and a storm was brewing in the centre court of the Rome Open. World No. 1 Roger Federer was set to take on a young teenager in pirate shorts, someone in the midst of an undefeated streak on clay, someone who already beaten the Swiss maestro twice that year.
The duo had faced off in a five-set match at the 2005 Miami Open and Federer had emerged victorious despite being two-sets-to-love down at one point. In attendance this time was seven-time Grand Slam champion John McEnroe who would later famously oscillate between picking Federer and his opponent for the sobriquet of "Greatest Of All Time".
In what was their third encounter of the year (the previous two came at the finals of the Dubai Open and the Monte Carlo Masters, which also featured the first encounter between Federer and future World No. 1 Novak Djokovic), the arch rivals traded the opening set tie breakers.
An incredibly high quality of tennis was maintained over the next two sets, although they weren't as close. In a dramatic fifth set, Federer raced to an early 4-1 lead before Rafael Nadal – for that's who it was – crawled his way back to even things up. The Swiss maestro did not let the momentum shift and had two match points on the Spaniard's serve with a 6-5 lead, but the "King of Clay" saved both and went on to complete a historic victory 6-7(0), 7-6(5), 6-4, 2-6, 7-6(5).
The pair would go on to face each other six times that year, with Nadal winning four of their encounters and Federer getting a semblance of revenge with a first set bagel in the finals of Wimbledon, where he won his fourth title. In what has been called one of the greatest seasons in the history of the Open Era, Federer ended the year with a win-loss record of 92-5 (the fifth loss came against a 19-year-old Andy Murray), won three Grand Slams (he reached the final of the French Open and guess who stopped him? The one and only - Rafa), and 12 titles including four Masters 1000 championships.
What was apparent from the match, however, was that even at his peak Federer found it extremely difficult to hit the-top spin forehands that Nadal directed to his single handed backhand. This was compounded by the Spaniard's ability to reach every part of the court and retrieve balls that would normally be winners against lesser players.
The 17-time Grand Slam champion was never a grinder – he needed to play his aggressive game. But Nadal's speed and top spin prevented this. In a bid to hit more winners, to prevent the Spaniard from grinding him down with his stamina, Federer hit an uncharacteristic 89 unforced errors in a match that lasted five hours and six minutes.
Over the years, the 10-time French Open champion would become a mental block for the man who had the longest consecutive reign as the World No. 1 in the Open Era. Now, their head-to-head record stands at 23-11 in Nadal's favour.
But if that one match ten years ago had gone differently, if one of those match points had gone in Federer's favour, it would have been another story. For starters, the Swiss maestro might have become the only man after Rod Laver to win a calendar year Grand Slam. Nadal would once again thwart that attempt a year later in the finals of the 2007 French Open.
Here's the match in all its glory.
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