“He is always able to do the most difficult things easy.”
Like reaching a Wimbledon final at almost 38 years old? Like hitting 24 more winners than errors against one of the best baseline players in the sport? Like avenging a 6-3, 6-4, 6-2 loss one month earlier?
It was not easy, but Roger Federer did all of that–and more–during a 7-6(3), 1-6, 6-3, 6-4 victory over Rafael Nadal in the Wimbledon semifinals on Friday evening, after which Nadal bestowed the aforementioned praise on his great rival. Facing Nadal for the first time in 11 years at Wimbledon but just five weeks after getting blown out in the French Open semis, Federer turned in a vintage performance to triumph in three hours and two minutes. The Swiss struck almost twice as many winners (51) as errors (27), including 14 aces compared to just one double-fault.
“Obviously extremely high,” Federer said when asked where this ranked among his plethora of impressive exploits at the All-England Club. “It’s always very, very cool to play against Rafa here, especially (because we) haven’t played (here) in so long.”
The eight-time Wimbledon champion is now 3-1 against Nadal at Wimbledon and 14-10 on surfaces other than clay, trailing the overall head-to-head series 24-16. This one may not live in history like the 2008 final, but it was spectacular by mere mortals’ standards. It was highlighted by a whole host of incredible baseline rallies–a surprising majority of which the world No. 3 won–and a dramatic clinching service hold at 5-4 in the fourth set.
“It lived up to the hype, especially from coming out of the gates we were both playing very well,” Federer assessed. “Then the climax at the end with the crazy last game, some tough rallies there. I mean, I don’t know. It had everything at the end, which was great, I guess. I’m just relieved it’s all over at this point.
“But it’s definitely, definitely going to go down as one of my favorite matches to look back at–again, because it’s Rafa, it’s at Wimbledon, the crowds were into it, great weather…. I felt like I played good, also, throughout the four sets. I can be very happy.”
Happy, yes, but not for too long.
Federer’s reward for beating his historical No. 1 rival is a showdown against his No. 1 rival in terms of quantity. It’s Federer vs. Novak Djokovic for the 48th time on championship Sunday.
“I know it’s not over yet,” Federer noted. “There’s no point to start partying tonight or get too emotional, too happy about it, even though I am extremely happy…. If it was the end of the tournament, it would be very different right now. I’d be speaking very different; feeling very different. There is, unfortunately or fortunately, one more.
“It’s great on many levels. But (I) got to put my head down and stay focused.”
It’s not over yet. There’s one more to go. There’s more history to make.
too good
Great match by two all time champions…..Congrats to both!!!
Fed came with a clear game plan and stuck by it; Rafa OTOH, looked confused, unsure of himself.
When Rafa was unsure of himself, he would play his default game ie, his defensive game. Rafa should just play the way he played in the previous five rounds, just went for his shots and not hesitate.
He said he was worried about his BH, I don’t understand why he should be worrying, so what if you make more errors with that BH? You still have your other weapons! His FHDTL was in non existence, preferring to go CC to Fed’s BH; perhaps he’s afraid that the ball would come back CC to his BH if he were to hit his FHDTL shots. It just shown his lack of confidence facing Fed, when he was playing so well against other opponents.
Had he played that pattern and Fed’s FH did come back CC to his BH, well why not then hit his BH DTL and forced Fed to run to cover his BH corner?
It’s strange that Rafa had to worry about his BH when he’s hitting it so well the whole tournament; the more he worried about it, the more errors came out of it!
Fed played a great match, no doubt about it, taking his chances, forcing the issue, not relenting and so he deserved the win and a shot in the final, Rafa doesn’t deserve it playing the way he played.
Well done to Fed, good luck in the final, he certainly needs that.
Congrats to Federer and all fed fans for a brilliant victory. Well deserved . He really has rafas number now on non clay surfaces and it is surprising how the tables have turned here .
Rafa – so 17,wimby 18,ao 19,wimby 19- the series of disappointments on non clay continue. Each time I desire for you to win ,you disappoint by losing to fed or djoko. I wonder when you will win a non clay slam beating the other 2. It’s long due, please do it soon.
Djoko maybe fav on paper for Sunday but I think fed will win it( his skill, the crowd , I think he will play freely and ofcourse the nishikori omen :-)) . It will be ripe to call it his swansong n retire then and there. He won’t get such a beautiful oppty for a swansong and no one will touch 21 either, so his record will be safe.
Please sanju, why is it Fed’s swan song? He will play for a few more years, maybe he’ll outlast Rafa!
As for Rafa, his two AO losses to Fed and Djoko, happened when he’s back from injury. His Wimbledon 2018 loss was unfortunate, with circumstances not under his control. To me it’s this Wimbledon that I’m really disappointed, with the way he played when I feel he had the game to win. Also, it’s an opportunity missed and I’m not sure he’ll have any more opportunities in future to win here again.
I was a little bit disappointed about his AO2017 loss to Fed, because he was leading in the fifth set (just like I was disappointed with his loss to Djoko in 2012 AO). The AO2019 loss wasn’t that disappointing to me, knowing that’s his first tournament in months; just a little bit shocked with the way he played.
Congrats to federer. He was the better player, period.
All this talk about federer retiring is nonsensical. He will play till 2021. He is not going to miss an opportunity to finally win an olympic gold in singles next year.
As for needing a bit of luck for sunday’s final. He will need a divine miracle and then some to even get it to a fifth set let alone win it. Djoko will not let him win, fed is no wawrinka on a hard court.
Let’s just hope that djokovic (after he wins on sunday) doesnt go on a rampage and tries to do the nole slam again bc that will be disastrous for the other two GOATS. He came awfully close this year but rafa delivered when it mattered.
So do you think Rafa has any chance to win a non clay slam..USO n ao? I’m writing off Wimbledon
I am not saying it should be feds swan song. I am saying it will be perfect for a swansong if he beats both and wins the slam.
Rafa has more than enough chance of winning any non-clay slam including wimbledon though wimbledon for him will be more difficult as it is his least favorite surface and the transition from clay to grass is too short plus he’s a better hard court player than grass (though he’s a great grass court player on the same level as murray or even better).
Sanju, when was the last time federer beat both nadal and djokovic to win any grand slam? That aint happening on sunday I’m afraid.
Apart from RG, I don’t think Fed has ever even *played* both Nadal and Novak in the same slam, so I’m not sure how much you want to draw from that.
What’s quite hilarious is that you think Rafa has “more than enough chance” of winning any slam -including two that he hasn’t won for 9-10 years; yet you’re convinced that Fed has no chance in a couple days to win one match against a guy that he has close to an even record against.
Fed: 11 HC slams, 6 WTF titles, 22 HC masters 1000s
Wawrinka: 2 HC slams, 0 WTF, 0 HC masters 1000s
“Fed is no Wawrinka on a hard court”
I guess you’re right.
If u read carefully you would know that i meant fed is no wawrinka on a hard court TO DJOKOVIC. Translation: he is not a bad match up for nole on grass as wawrinka is to nole on a hardcourt.
So Joe like you said to me, dont be silly, Lol. You knew exactly what i meant, you just want to be facetious.
No, Happy, the more you say, the more I think you’re talking sh*t. Fed has beaten Novak many times on HC, including at slams. He was very close at wimby in 2014, and -in many people’s opinion including Kevin and mine- was the better player going into 2015 slam finals but choked. If I’m right that 2017 onwards cleared that mental block, Fed has plenty of chance to win the final.
‘
As I said, I have no problem with you or anyone picking Novak to win. But I honestly don’t know why you’re so cocksure he will. Perhaps you should consider putting a large wager on the match.
Rafa would always have opportunities.
He is not playing that bad making his fans doubt about his chance in coming years. If he just won the BP on that last game, he might already be in tbe final.
Fed did not win a single slam for 5 years after Wimbly 2012 until AO 2017.
I still believe Rafa by the time he retires would have 23 in GS tally and would lead the rest.
RG: 3 more
Another three GS: 2 more
That’s very doable and most likely he would also play for at least another 5 years to Fed’s age.
Rafa has won at least one slam since 2005 to 2019, except two years 2015/6.
He will continue his yearly routine for five more years to come, winning 25% of the slam opportunities. The new generation will shine post 2024.
The question is between federer and serena, who has a better chance of winning their respective wimbledon final? My money is on neither, though serena has a slighly better chance. Just slightly. Considering she was atrocious in her last two grand slam finals and being a diva in the last one, I’m not holding my breath.
Serena will beat halep . Halep may freeze in her first wimby.
Serena has better chances to win than Fed of course, because her opponent is Halep who is a first timer in a Wimbledon final. Djoko is a four times winner and he’s not even stressed out when reaching his sixth final.
Lucky, I agree but naomi osaka was also a first timer in the US open last year and we know how that turned out. It was disastrous on so many levels not just the tennis. I hope serena wins and further cements her GOAT status
Joe your language is apalling and you dont have to be rude when someone disagrees with you. It’s called difference of opinion and the whole point of a tennis forum.
Beating djokovic so many times on hardcourt is irrelevant because recently djokovic has had his number on all surfaces except clay (he beat djoko on clay in french open 2011). He may have been the better player in that wimbledon final and should have won but he still lost and capitulated in the final set, that tells me he has a mental block against him as he has lost many times to him ever since including in the US open which he should have won also but lost again.
Federe’s recent form doesnt suggest otherwise, it suggested otherwise to nadal (no surprises there as he has beaten rafa too many times recently outside clay) but djokovic is no nadal and has federer’s number RECENTLY.
Kevin a fed fan expects djoko to win based on recent results and the mental block and djoko winning twice against fed on a wimbledon final and I want federer to win on sunday but that’s just wishful thinking on my part and that is not happening on sunday in my opinion. Be free to disagree but dont be rude and use appalling language, I can return the favor but I am not wired like that. Look at kevin a fed fan, he can disagree with people and still not be rude hence why everyone enjoys debating him here, the same with luckystar and sanju. If you cant do the same, please ignore my comments and i will ignore yours, simple as that.
I sincerely apologize for that language, Happy. I never do that and I should have used “nonsense” to describe your post instead of the rude word I used. I meant to convey that I really don’t think you’re being serious. Sincere apologies again.
Now I will assume you are being serious; and so to the substance of your argument. We obviously disagree about the existence of a mental block. But even granting it, don’t you think you’re being unreasonably pessimistic about Fed’s chances? He beat Novak in 2012 on grass and it’s not like he was blown out in either 2014-15. On HC he played him very close in Paris last November and has won a few matches in recent years, e.g., Shanghai, Dubai, Cinci, etc. Why then the talk of needing divine intervention? Don’t you think that’s a bit hyperbolic?
OK Joe, divine intervention was a bit much, LOl. My apologies for that. It’s just that djokovic is so annoyingly dangerous in a major final that I fear the result is a foregone conclusion, even when djoko plays bad he still wins, its annoying and i mean that as a compliment.
If djoko wins, his fans on other forums will be insufferable and the over the top tearing of shirt celebration is just grating and we know how djoko wants to eclipse both fed and rafa in grand slams. Thats why i want fed to win but I’m afraid he won’t.
To be honest I am neutral in the final as I am a Rafa fan with just tons of respect for the other 2. However I am supporting djoko in the final. Reason the more fed goes beyond 20,the tougher it is for Rafa to catch him. It’s not by choice I am supporting, just a selfish reason dictated by Rafa 🙂 djoko catching rafa once he touches 16..we will see that once it happens, for now the goalpost needs to be nearer .
I would feel the same in your circumstances, Sanju.
Thanks Joe. I will be so happy for fed to win and will congratulate you and everyone else if he does. “Let’s not deceive ourselves” was too strong and dismissive as a statement i admit. I should have said i believe djokovic has a better chance of winning on sunday than fed but I would love to be proven wrong.
So are you a Federer fan?
I am both a fed and rafa fan like fedexal.
If Djoko wins on Sunday, that means he has 5 Wimbledon titles, I feel he catching Fed’s 8 may become a reality. Djoko doesn’t look like he’s stopping anytime soon, and I think he made it clear that he’s there to challenge both Fed and Rafa for greatness.
I do think it’s very likely that he’s the one who ends up having the most slams, for he’s just so good on three of the four slam surfaces. He’s only one HC slam behind Fed, it’s likely he’ll win a few more, given the field now when no one else is able to challenge him at three of the four slams.
That’s why I want fed to win lucky atleast to keep rafa ahead by 3 against djoko
But Happy, why are you so against Djoko?
I’m a Rafa fan no doubt, but I do recognise both Fed’s and Djoko’s greatness. I’ve high hope on Rafa winning many slams but have to recognise it may be beyond his reach after so many injuries that he suffered throughout his career.
In my mind, Rafa should have won the channel slam in 2009 if not for his injury that year. He’s in his peak years physically, and could have dominated the tour from 2008 to 2010 at least if not for the injury. Too bad he missed the chance and since then, he could never dominate again because of the rise of Djoko.
I think we may have to give up hope on Rafa winning Wimbledon again, for it’ll get tougher to win the channel slams as he gets older and older. He may still win the HC slams, he’s good enough to win them given his recent results.
I think chances of Djoko winning a few more slams > Rafa > Fed, as Djoko has high chances of winning at three of the four slams, Rafa great on one and has good enough chances to win at least one of the two HC slams.
Hi lucky
I am not against djokovic. He’s an exceptional tennis player always gracious in defeat but winning not so much though I think he’s gotten better.
Fed at his best is poetry in motion esp on grass while rafas contrasting style is equally stunning and unique. Djokovic became Anoda version of nadal, remember nadal was d master of defense to offense n counterpunching n djoko studied that n tailored made his game to be exactly like that and better even post 2010.
You see how wta final went. Deplorable from Serena as I expected and I am worried fed may do d same as he has in the past. Djoko rarely does that if at all except maybe against wawrinka.
Fed won’t retire if he wins tmr. He won’t pull a Sampras, he’s too good for that. He still wants that Olympic gold.
Sanju, Rafa can beat djoko anywhere and Vice versa bc no one is invincible on any surface even on clay.
If the tmr shows signs of being a damp squid like the wta today, I will switch off and keep myself busy instead watching Another beat down when I am very sure the other opponent can bring it just as much as the other guy.
Now that it’s all over for Rafa I will share my thoughts….When I came here before the famous Fedal semi I must say I was more than surprised that most of you, including Ricky were predicting Rafa’’s fairly easy win over grass goat. I decided not to post my comments as I would have been observed as someone who didn’t believe in Rafa or who was disrespectful or so. My thinking was: “what are you guys talking about? This is Rafa’s least favorable surface on which he had trouble reaching later rounds in the past…and we were all worried he would go out early to Kyrgios so now he was the fav over Fed??! That was HUGE underestimation of the grass GOAT! And one more thing that bothered me the most: many Rafans here were cautious and worried about Rafa vs Fed in RG semi and all of the sudden Rafa was the clear favorite on grass?! That is rather biased and unrealistic expectations to begin with…
Fed delivers exactly as he was supposed to on his fave surface! He was more confident of course the same as Rafa had been on his favorite clay! The confidence plays the crucial role, but one cannot expect Rafa to be fully confident on grass-ever!
So, I want to reiterate: Fed is not the Maestro for nothing! He deserves all respect from us Rafans as he is one of the reasons why Rafa is improving all the time! Fed was impressive yesterday: well, Fed was himself yesterday! No surprise there!
I love my Rafa even more after this! He admits losing to a better player the same Fed admitted after RG semi! My Rafa is realistic and down to earth! He did have chances in this match by Fed was just a better player out there! Rafa will now focus on USO which I am pretty confident he will win if healthy and playing the way he does!
I wish both Nole and Fed luck in the finals! I hope for the great match!
Vamos Rafa! We all love you no matter what!
Well said, Natashao. I do think Fed and Rafa have an enormous amount of respect for one another (and for Novak, though Fed wasnt’ always so gracious toward him in the earlier part of this decade). They have all pushed each other to new heights, no doubt.
I agree with you nats, I wasnt expecting rafa to blow fed away either, it was djoko i was more worried about should rafa get to the final given that his serve hasnt been great throughout wimbledon.
Happy, I had my opinion just the opposite from yours; I thought Rafa had to overcome Fed but he would do better against Djoko, simply because both of them could go toe to toe baseline to baseline. Rafa would be physically fit to do that against Djoko for five sets, and given how close they went last year, I was confident that this time Rafa would win.
I think I predicted a Rafa win over Fed in four or five sets; I might not post the prediction here, I couldn’t remember, but so I knew if Fed could play his first strike tennis without missing, Rafa would’ve a hard time defending; so I was hoping and believing Rafa would play his aggressive attacking tennis – the one two punch tennis – that he played so well this tournament. I was thinking Fed would not be able to sustain his level for long, seeing how he made hard work with Kei.
It’s not a matter of not respecting or not recognising Fed’s prowess on this surface, but having seen how he played so far with his BH shanking etc, I thought he might not up his level enough to beat Rafa, should Rafa play as well as he did all along in this tournament.
I was wrong of course, and Rafa played his usual role as the counterpuncher and so aggression > counterpunching in the end.
AO Is Novaks turf..he will need to be taken out by someone else for Rafa to have a chance there..
USO you think he has a chance? These days he is getting injured a lot of HCs
Yes he has a chance at USO, in fact very good chance because I feel other than the FO, the USO is where Djoko is relatively more vulnerable. Rafa has beaten Djoko there twice, none at AO and none at Wimbledon in recent times (he beat Djoko in 2007 but that was 12 years ago!).
Rafa was only injured at USO last year, it’s not like he’s always injured there. He won in 2017 when he’s not injured.
It didn’t go five sets, but a great match nonetheless. I must say as a fan of Fed I didn’t expect it and I got my prediction wrong. I thought Rafa would most likely win in four given his comparatively higher level of play in earlier rounds.
Fed really raised his game a level, served close to perfect. Did well in the TB to recover from mini-breaks. His mental approach was impressive – ice-cold on the vast majority of big points, kinda like 2017.
1st set was huge for momentum, and really allowed Fed to swing freely. I agree with others, Rafa looked tentative during many moments. I think he was troubled by Fed’s ROS. Fed’s return, particularly on the BH side, was critical as this can be a weakness. He got it right back at Nadal’s feet many times. Rafa just did not look able to get the depth and heaviness on the ball that he got regularly in most of his other matches.
Then a (almost anticipated) slump – it was hard for Fed to maintain such a level. Rafa got into more rallies, Fed’s serve dropped and he got broken. Rafa seemed be looking at his coaching box and talking to himself, even though things were starting to go his way. I guess he still felt not in control/things not going to plan – he knew better than me.
The third set was an impressive comeback, as unlike in some past matches, Fed took back control with the serve and didn’t let up. Fourth set – same again until the last game. Rafa really fought extremely hard there, I felt Fed had to win that game or it could easily go to a 5th (which may have advantaged Rafa – it would’ve been tight).
Where are you mira? I was hoping to hear your opinion.
It is definitely true that the US Open is Rafa’s best non-RG Major. He is always formidable there. It’s important for us to recognize that, for better or worse, the US Open is quite different now than it was before 2015. Once the upper facade was put in prior to the 2015 tournament, it completely took the wind issue out of the equation. That is very good for Novak. Aside from Rafa being at his absolute best at US Open in 2010 and 2013, I think that one of the reasons Rafa has had success over Novak there was because Rafa is so good at playing in wind. Before 2015, Ashe often had insane, swirling wind. I think Rafa has typically handled that better than anyone else. We actually just saw him handle it beautifully at RG. Also, I have gone to the US Open the last few years, and I have witnessed the court speed get increasingly slower, as well as the humidity get increasingly UNBEARABLE! Last year, the humidity the absolutely oppressive just being a spectator! It almost hurt for me to watch the players play in those conditions. I seriously couldn’t fathom how they were able to play in that…
As far as his health is concerned, I am worried that the conditions at the Open make injury much more likely for him. I can’t even begin to describe what it was like watching that semifinal versus Thiem last year… It was seriously unbearable to watch. That is not fun tennis to me. In my opinion, tennis should not be a Gladiator contest. That’s what the US Open has started to become. There’s nothing that can be done about the humidity, but they could just SLIGHTLY make the court quicker- even just a little bit- which would make it so that it’s not just a Gladiator grind-fest to see how can physically outlast the other. Rafa won the US Open twice when it was much quicker than it is now. I think it would really help him and others avoid injury and exhaustion if they just sped it up slightly. Sitting in that stadium, attempting to enjoy Nadal vs. Thiem, it really felt to me like it is MEAN of the Open to make the court so damn slow when they know the humidity will be so unbearable.
There is no question that Rafa’s best shot of beating Novak again outside of RG is the US Open. However, I’m a little skeptical of relying on their past US Open matchups in making assumptions about how they would fare now because of how different the US Open is since 2015. Since those changes have occurred, Rafa has won it, and that definitely means a lot! However, in the 4 years since the changes were made, Novak has made the Final all 3 times that he has played the tournament, and won it 2 of those times. That is a far cry from the Novak who seemingly made the Final every year before 2015, but only won it once. Could it be that Novak has addressed some of the issues that stifled him at the USO previously? 2 titles and a Final in his last 3 appearances suggests recent dominance there, does it not? Thinking about it now, I would LOVE to see a Rafa-Novak match again at the USO! It would surely be awesome.
Rafa would always have opportunities.
He is not playing that bad making his fans doubt about his chance in coming years. If he just won the BP on that last game, he might already be in tbe final.
Fed did not win a single slam for 5 years after Wimbly 2012 until AO 2017.
I still believe Rafa by the time he retires would have 23 in GS tally and would lead the rest.
RG: 3 more
Another three GS: 2 more
That’s very doable and most likely he would also play for at least another 5 years to Fed’s age.
Rafa has won at least one slam since 2005 to 2019, except two years 2015/6.
He will continue his yearly routine for five more years to come, winning 25% of the slam opportunities. The new generation will shine post 2024.
I am pleased and proud by all Rafans here and their reactions about the match. This must be one of the ‘cleanest’ places were Fedal fans coexist respectfully.
I want a victory tomorrow so badly. And it’s not even about the 21st or the goat. He just lost already too many finals to Djoko on edge. This would be painful. I am not asking for anything more than that. And also beating Rafa and Novak b2b, would be even more impressive. Roger can retire then.
Wish you lots of luck for tomorrow Eugene! I just hope Fed can bring his best tennis!☺
Thanks amy. Feeling vulnerable. A don’t have many attachments or vices. But Fed is one of them.
A note about Fed-
I think what impressed me the most about his performance against Rafa just how strikingly calm and cool he was. Becker kept pointing it out in the commentary, and I definitely agree with him. I think Becker was correct in saying after the match that that was the most composed and mentally-stable Fed we have seen in well over a year. Strictly in terms of his composure, he reminded me of his 2017 AO run. Anytime yesterday when Fed was facing huge pressure, he seemed like he couldn’t be bothered to even care or notice! The Fed that I saw over the previous year and a half could be pretty mentally fragile, and often got the “grumpy old man” thing going on. And that is a big part of why I thought Rafa had the edge. I saw NONE of that yesterday! I don’t know where THAT Federer was for the last year-and-a-half, but it was great to see him again. 🙂 It may not mean anything against Novak tomorrow, but it was nice to see that Fed again for at least one match.
Rafans- I’m still thinking of you today. I know that it’s always hard for Big 3 fans when their guy loses to one of the others. Fed fans just went through it a few weeks ago. Just try to keep it in perspective that Rafa literally just lifted a Major trophy less than a freakin’ month ago. He probably hadn’t even finished cherishing that trophy by the time Wimbledon started. Here’s a cool stat to maybe help cheer you up, momentarily- Rafa is so great, he has won more or as many major titles at just ONE of the major tournaments than any other player in history( outside of Big 3 and Sampras) won at the 4 majors combined… There are ALL-TIME GREATS who couldn’t win even half the TOTAL major titles that Rafa won at just ONE of the majors. Boris Becker and Stefan Edberg are considered all-time greats. Not only has Rafa won double the amount of majors at one tournament that those two greats won total, but he has also won the same amount of titles at the other 3 majors as Becker and Edberg, and only 1 less (so far) than John McEnroe. McEnroe, Becker, and Edberg are all arguably Top-5 quicker-Court players EVER, and Rafa has won pretty much the same amount of titles outside of RG as those guys. So what do you get when you take the careers of those guys I mentioned, and then on TOP of that you add the undisputed, BY FAR, greatest clay court player ever, what do you get? An argument for being the greatest player ever- that’s what you get. 🙂 I hope that maybe helps take today’s sting away, for just a moment.
Djover vs Fed. Where is your money ?
God damn it Rafa, you were s’pposed to win this!!
this is not a clay tournament, so Nadal righteously doesn’t get access to the elite club of the grass court legends.
But Nadal is already in the elite club for your info!
Grasslover,
U should stop smoking so much of it.