Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal have thrilled fans with their rivalry for almost two decades. Although, the duo have a better bond now, that was not the case when they were young. Federer and Nadal often had disagreements and one such occasion was at the Australian Open 2014.
Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal faced off in the Australian Open semifinals in 2014. The Spaniard dominated the match from the first point and ended up winning in straight sets. Nadal ran through Federer to get a 7-6, 6-3, 6-3 win to secure a place in the final. However, Federer’s post match comments about Nadal took the spotlight.
Roger Federer felt that Rafael Nadal took too much time in between points and the umpire did nothing about it. The Swiss maestro was visibly frustrated after losing the match and took out his frustration in the post match conference. Federer thought that Nadal went unpunished even after talking too much time in-between points. The Swiss superstar further added that rules should be similar for every player and the umpire should not be scared to act against any particular player.
“I’m not complaining much about the time. But I think I’ve played him, what, three times. He’s gotten two point penalties over the course of our rivalry. I just think that’s not quite happening. I mean, we know how much time he takes between points. I’m not complaining about so many things. But either you have rules or you don’t. If you don’t have rules, it’s fine. Everybody can do whatever they want to do.”
Also, Federer was unhappy about Nadal’s grunting throughout the match. The then 32 year-old complained about it to the chair umpire but no action was taken against the Spaniard. Rafael Nadal clarified in the post match conference that he had no intention of disturbing his opponent with his grunting and his long service routine.
Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer head-to-head
Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal went head-to-head 40 times over the course of their careers, mainly competing for big prizes. Early on in their career, Rafael Nadal enjoyed dominance over Roger Federer, however, the Swiss maestro soon found a way back.
Nadal had Federer’s number at the start of his career. The Spaniard was Federer’s nemesis at the beginning of his career. Until 2014, Nadal was totally dominant over his Swiss rival. After his Australian Open semi-final win against Federer, Nadal lead the head-to-head by 23-9. However, since 2015, Federer enjoyed success against his Spanish counterpart.
Roger Federer won 7 out of their next eight matches to improve his record against Nadal. The Swiss maestro even won the last ever match against Nadal, at the semi-final in Wimbledon 2019. In the end, Rafael Nadal ended up with a 24-16 head-t0-head over Roger Federer.
