Anytime Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal get together on the tennis court, there’s guaranteed to be magic.
In T-minus nine hours from now, the two tennis heavyweights will meet in the semifinal round of the 2014 Australian Open, setting up what is the ideal matchup in the mind of any tennis fanatic—definitely worth losing a night’s sleep over (start time for the match is 3:30am EST).
Their latest meeting marks the 33rd time that the Federer-Nadal rivalry will be played out. And though Nadal has a pretty convincing 22-10 career record over his biggest rival, anything can happen when the two stars collide.
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Ranked as the top men’s player in the world, Nadal bounced back from a serious knee injury to put up a tremendous 2013 campaign in which he recorded 10 singles titles, including his eighth career French Open title. He's carried over that momentum into this year, and has been playing like a man on a mission.
On the other side of the net, Federer is coming off what was one of his most disappointing seasons in the last decade. In 2013, Federer only managed to win one ATP title, and failed to reach the final of even one of the four major tournaments. As a result, the former No. 1 player finished 2013 as the sixth ranked men’s player—his lowest ranking in 11 years.
This year, however, R-Fed seems to have put the past behind him. With the legendary Stefan Edberg now in his coaching box, and a brand new tennis racket in his hand, Federer has looked like his old great self so far down under. With that said, he’ll likely have to kick it to yet another level if he hopes to down red-hot Rafa.
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Whether Federer fans may not be willing to admit it, there’s no question Nadal has overtaken the title of “best in the game.” Another Australian Open title will give Rafa 14 career Grand Slam titles, putting him just three behind R-Fed and further shortening the gap between the two greats.
Here are a some key stats to know for tonight's match:
- This year's Federer-Nadal semifinal is a rematch of 2012 Australian Open semi (Nadal won 6–7(5–7), 6–2, 7–6(7–5), 6–4).
- Nadal will look to beat Federer for the ninth time in a major, out of 11 attempts.
- The two players failed to meet in a Grand Slam tournament in 2013.
- Nadal has won four in a row against Federer dating back to 2013 Indian Wells.
- Federer and Nadal are the only two current men's players to have a career Grand Slam title under their belt.
- One more Grand Slam title will put Nadal in a tie with Pete Sampras for second on the all-time list (behind Federer).
- Nadal is dealing with a blister on his left hand that could alter the way he grips the racket.
- Roger Federer will play in the Nike Zoom Vapor 9.5 Tour sneakers; Nadal in the Nike Air Max Courtballistec 4.3.
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[Images via AusOpen.com]
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