To stop the greatest of all time

You know you're watching something special when it's 5am on a week day in the middle of a rain delay and the thought of going to sleep doesn't even enter your mind for fear of missing the event. Such was the case Monday morning (Australian time) when Rafael Nadal beat Roger Federer in an epic, arguably the greatest tennis match of all time.

How good was this match? How thrilling? Thrilling enough that my dad asked me if something was wrong when he noticed an irregularity in my breathing rate. (I wasn't breathing). In terms of tennis there's nothing (at least in my lifetime) that compares to what transpired Monday morning. There are a number of great matches that come to mind - the Rafter matches against Agassi and Ivanesevic, the Safin match where he finally beat Federer in Melbourne, the 21-19 Roddick-El Aynauoi clash, and even last year's matchup between Federer Nadal at Wimbledon. None of those matches come close to what we witnessed.

The storylines surrounding the match before and during the match (and now after), the build-up, and most importantly the incredible quality of tennis. The rallies, the blows these guys traded was amazing. The parity of the contest was incredible. For two completely different players to be so even was ridiculous. For the first time in over 25 years tennis has a great rivalry. It's been something that the game has missed dearly. The last decade or so has given as a number of pretenders. Sampras-Agassi was never really a great rivalry because Sampras quite clearly superior. Federer-Roddick was the same. My hope was for Federer-Safin (after the classic at the Australian Open in '05) but Safin's inconsistency made short work of that. At last we have a rivalry to match Borg-McEnroe, and potentially exceed it.

Enough philosophising though, here are my thoughts on the game;

I must confess I only started watching the game at 5-4 Nadal in the first set after I got home late from a party. That game though told me all I needed to know about the match. Nadal controlled the rallies and directed the play trying to keep Federer pinned deep with his trademark top-spin forehand crosscourt into the Federer backhand. Federer would try work the ball to Nadal's backhand and set up something short for his blistering forehand to put away. The longer the point went the better chance Nadal had of winning it. Nadal didn't exactly hammer away the first set with conviction, conceding break points before closing it out. In this game Federer was plagued by an inability to even put Nadal's second serve back into play. It was astounding. Nadal was lucky to escape with the first set.

My tennis coach once told me that the most vital games of a match can come at the start of the second set after you've won the first. It's crucial to maintain pressure on the opposition and not give away easy games. Nadal didn't exactly do that, as Federer held serve to love in about 12 seconds. So often we see after an easy service game the server will come back to break. Federer did exactly that and raced off to a 4-1 lead. By that time I was pretty much ready to get ready for the third set. Then we learnt something about Nadal. He wasn't going to give in and give Federer anything. Nadal refused to accept that the second set was a foregone conclusion. He rallied and stunningly reeled off five games in a row to claim the second set, and seemingly end the match's competitiveness. At that stage I was getting ready for an early night.

The third set began tamely enough as the stars traded service holds. Then at 3-3 0-40 on Federer's serve we were prepared to say goodbye to the 'epic' we had hoped for. At this stage we figured that hey, Federer's a superstar, the greatest player of all time, winner of 12 grand slams and 5 Wimbledon's in a row, but he had lost it. He surrendered meekly to Djokovic in the Australian, was thoroughly raped by Nadal in the French, and as he had all year, had looked like a shadow of himself in the Wimbledon final. And at 4-6 4-6 3-3 0-40 he had lost it. We were effectively one point away from the end of an era. A straight sets victory to Nadal and the age of Federer's comes to an end, no doubt. Then something happened. Federer, like Nadal in the second, refused to give in. It was the first sign of resiliency we had seen from Federer since the final last year. Nadal tightened up, Federer delivered some big serves, and after a pump of the first he held for a 4-3 lead. The momentum had swung.

The Fed-Express rode this momentum all the way into the tiebreak, taking it 7-5 courtesy of four huge aces. (Minor note here: I thought it was important and indicative of things to come that down 6-3 in the tiebreak Nadal held his own and forced Federer to serve it out at 6-5. It just sent the message that Nadal wasn't going to let Federer do it the easy way).

At this point in the match Federer had all the momentum, and despite Nadal's 2-1 set advantage, Federer would be edging for slight favouritism. But, in a big boost for Nadal, the Spaniard had the right to serve first in the fourth set. So despite having the momentum Federer was forced into playing from behind for the whole set. This was huge. This came into play in a big way in the 10th game of the set. Down 5-4 0-30 on his serve, Federer was two points away from losing his Wimbledon crown. If there was ever a time to hop on the Nadal bandwagon it was now. But in trademark Federer fashion the King delivered some big serves and in no time we had another tiebreak. Unlike the previous tiebreak, it was Nadal this time who jumped in front early. Nadal's anticipation and attack on the Federer serve in the tiebreak was remarkable. Nadal jumped to a 5-2 lead with two of his own serves to come. He had the match. It was his to lose. Until. He choked. An 83mph second serve double fault opened the door for Federer, and he pounced. At 5-2 Nadal only needed to win one of the next four points to bring up Championship point on his own serve. And he lost. All of them. Instead of holding the Wimbledon trophy as he should have been by now he was now looking at a set point against him. No one would have been surprised to see Rafa drop that point, the set, and the match from there. But he didn't.

Just as he did in the second set and the third set tiebreak he responded. He held his own and brought up his first championship point at 7-6. To the surprise of absolutely no one Federer unleashed an unreturnable serve to tie the breaker up at 7-7. Then came something special. The next two points of the match really defined it, and the rivalry. I'm not sure there has ever been as special a back-to-back points as the ones here. At 7-7 two points away from the championship Nadal struggled to return a big Federer serve, and Federer charged into the net with a fantastic deep approach shot the Nadal forehand. Nadal ran and chased the ball down before drilling it down the line past the shocked Federer. I can not display in words how incredible this moment was. Federer played the point almost perfectly. Good solid serve, solid approach, but Nadal still came up with the winner. How Nadal a) got to the ball, and b) hit a winner was amazing. That ball was gone, Nadal had to hit a winner and he did. That point personified Nadal in this match and in his career. Against the ropes, resiliency, determination, grit and a knack for the sublime. And it brought up Championship point.

Then Federer reminded us why he's the greatest player of all time. Nadal unleashed a terrific serve out wide and Federer could only bunt it back to half-court. Nadal then whips a forehand into the Federer backhand and charges to the net. Federer, of perfect balance, then drills it down the line for a winner. In no time Federer has the set 10-8. If the 7-7 point defined Nadal, the 7-8 point defined Federer. Smooth, balanced and perfectly poised. And with it he had taken the match to a fifth set, the only fitting way for the match to end.

OK, let it be known that at this point there was no way possible I could see Nadal winning this match. I mean, 2 sets to 0 up, 3-3 0-40 in the third set, 4-5 0-30 in the fourth set, 5-2 up in the tiebreak, two championship points in the tiebreak. On the 8-7 point in the tiebreak if Nadal goes down the line to the wide open forehand court instead of hitting it to Federer's covered backhand, the match is over. Nadal should have already had this match won of five different occasions. And yet, the game is tied and on level ground. How, mentally, is it possible to get past that?

After the incredible Borg-McEnroe, er, Nadal-Federer fourth set tiebreak, the start of the fifth set suffered from some notable jet-lag. The intensity was lacking, and then at 2-2 the rain came. This turned out to be a good thing for a) the players, and b) the spectacle. Both guys came out rejuvenated, and Federer sent a huge message by hammering down two aces to finish of the rain delayed game and take a 3-2 advantage. A big moment of truth for Nadal came at 4-3 down and serving. At 4-6 4-6 7-6 7-6 4-3 for the first time in the match Federer took the tactical advantage. After Fed had blasted some short forehand winners of shallow Nadal returns, Nadal blatantly refused to go near Federer's forehand side. You might think this is a good idea, it's not the stupidest thing to keep it away from arguably the single greatest shot of all time. But the fact is for Nadal to beat Federer he has to go to forehand side on occasion. You rally to Federer's backhand then push it deep to Federer's forehand to open up the court. So long as the ball is sufficiently deep then Federer can't (usually at least, he often finds a way) hit a winner, and he often drops it short. But after Nadal suddenly lost depth on his groundstrokes, he lost the confidence to go to take on Federer's forehand. This in turn led to a break point opportunity for Federer.

This was it for Nadal, 4-3 down break point, lose this point and Federer serves for his 6th Wimbledon championship. You can say what you want about Nadal's mental toughness in this match, but you can't tell me that he wins that game. Not on this court. For all intents and purposes, the break point Nadal faced here was Championship point Federer. After looking fragile for the whole game and most of the set Nadal played the biggest point of his life with aggression. He took the game on, and delivered a big whipping forehand deep to Federer's forehand side. Federer, expecting it to his backhand, struggled into the open court and barely connected, only able to put up a simple put-away volley for the Spaniard. Moments later it was 4-4.

At this point it was interesting to note the body language of both players. On one side of the court was the calm and collected Federer, sensing the end was in sight. He looked like a hunter poised for the kill. In stark contrast was Nadal, visibly living and dying with every point. After an ace of his was taken away by a slight brushing of the let-chord he threw his arms up in the air. You just wouldn't see Federer do that. Towards the end of the fifth, every single point that Nadal won he pumped his fist. He wanted it badly.

The two traded service holds, none of which were without drama. At 4-5 30-30 Federer found himself two points away from the championship. At 5-5 Federer was down 15-40, and at 6-6 found himself 0-30. Every time he found big serves to save him. Then came the fateful game at 7-7. By this stage Nadal was handling the Federer serve. Federer wasn't making all of his first serves, and when he did Nadal was anticipating them. After saving two break points at 15-40, Federer found himself down another having lost the point at Deuce. After an erratic forehand long, Nadal had the break. But of course it was never going to be that easy.

Serving for the Championship is just about the most pressure packed situation you can ask for. And when you lose the first point, as Nadal did, doubt starts to creep in. Nadal though, to his credit, responded going up 30-15. All of a sudden he was up 40-30 with the Championship on his racquet (again). Federer then continued on his campaign to be the next Jesus Christ when he blasted a Nadal serve for a cross-court backhand winner. Deuce. A Nadal serve brings up match point. Nadal plays it tentatively, and Federer sets himself up for an regulation mid-court forehand winner. Except. It hits the net. Game over. Bedlam for Nadal. The greatest match of all time comes to a conclusion.

I won't deny it, I was strongly barracking for Nadal to win. The way he grinds, the way he chases everything down, his determination, it's hard not to barrack for him. On the other hand, as many people are, I'm kinda sick of Federer. I appreciate him and what he's done, but I can't support him. Barracking for him is like barracking for the sun to set. It's boring. You support the underdog. For these reasons, wanting Nadal to win so badly, this was less a tennis match and more so a nervous breakdown divided into 5 sets. It wasn't so much a match of tennis so much as it was an experience.

As to how Nadal managed to win this match I do not know. People will question his mental toughness after choking in the fourth set tiebreak, but honestly, has there ever been a greater example of mental fortitude than overcoming that failure and winning in the fifth? I can't think of any. Federer may have wanted to win this match, and wanted it badly. Nadal needed it. He wasn't letting another year of training go down the drain, he knew that if he lost every other match until next year's Wimbledon would be irrelevant. After last year's loss Nadal broke down in tears in the locker room, inconsolable. He wasn't going to feel that again, he refused to. They say that the guy that wins the fight is the guy that's willing to die. In this fight, Nadal was the guy willing to die.

So what does this match tell us? Had he won, having been two sets and four championship points down, Federer would have to be unequivocally labeled the greatest player of all time. Period. The fact that he had the match (the momentum he had after the fourth set) and lost it to a guy that wanted it more leaves reason for doubt. What is clear though is that Federer may be the greatest player of all time, but at this moment Nadal is the greatest player in the world. And that's not debatable.