5 Greatest tennis rivalries of all time

#1 Roger Federer vs Rafael Nadal:

Career head to head: Nadal 23-15 Federer (9-3 in Majors, 6-3 in Masters)

Federer and Nadal

This is the rivalry which ranks among the very best in the history of not only tennis but sports in general. Federer is the genius with an artistic touch and a delightful forehand and Nadal is the quintessential athlete who refuses to budge at any stage. Their rivalry manages to divide the whole tennis fraternity usually and treats the spectators with unmatched delight and entertainment.

Nadal challenged Federer’s dominance in Wimbledon by posing serious questions in the 2007 final with his passing shots and forced Federer to stay on the baseline for the majority of the match before the latter carved out a win for himself. Nadal then beat Federer in the 2008 Wimbledon final which is considered widely to be the greatest tennis match of all time.

However, Federer managed to dominate Nadal on grass throughout his career but the tables were turned when they met on clay. Nadal has dominated Federer overall in his career with a better head-to-head record in Grand Slams and majors. Their latest meeting in majors happened in the Australian Open final in 2017 and Federer won that match in 5 sets.

Federer and Nadal have also won 20 and 17 majors respectively in their outstanding careers, but mere stats would not be able to do justice to the extent and impact of their rivalry. The two finest players of all time have entertained the audience like never before or since and their rivalry has more or less defined the game of tennis for more than a decade now.