Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal will go head-to-head against each other on Friday in Wimbledon for the first time after the historic 2008 final.
In the other semifinal, top seed and reigning champion Novak Djokovic will come up against Spain’s Roberto Bautista.
Federer is aiming for his 21st Grand Slam title while Nadal and Djokovic will be looking to close the gap with their 19th and 16th title respectively.
This will be the 40th meeting between the pair in their illustrious careers. In addition to that, this is their 14th meeting at a Grand Slam, having only played in semi-finals and finals.
This is Federer & Nadal’s 4th meeting at Wimbledon, with Federer leading 2-1 in the head to head.
Mutual Respect From Both Sides
Roger Federer:
Rafa has improved so much over the years on this surface. He’s also playing very differently. I remember back in the day how he used to serve, and now how much bigger he’s serving, how much faster he finishes points.
We have a lot of information on Rafa, as does he on us. So you can dive into the tactics like mad, or you say ‘it’s grass-court tennis so I’m going to come out and play my tennis. I’m excited to play him again.
Rafael Nadal:Â
Playing against Roger is always a unique situation. I’m excited to be back on Centre Court against him after 11 years. It means a lot for me and probably for him, too. The opportunities to play against each other are becoming less, but we still here.
I’m not expecting to learn new things about him. I just expect to play against probably the best player in history on this surface. I know he’s playing well. He feels comfortable here. I’m playing well, too.
I am playing with very high intensity, playing aggressive, serving well and returning very well. I know that I have to play my best.
Rivalry in Numbers
- 11 – Successive Grand Slam titles won between them, stretching from the 2005 French Open to the 2007 US Open
- 12 – Finals reached by Nadal at Roland Garros – a record which Federer is trying to match at Wimbledon
- 65 – Consecutive grass-court wins for Federer before Nadal ended that run in the 2008 Wimbledon final
- 70 – The combined age of 37-year-old Federer, who turns 38 next month, and 33-year-old Nadal
- 100 – Matches won by Federer at Wimbledon, the first man to reach a century at a single Grand Slam
- 211 – Consecutive weeks sharing the top two spots in the world rankings between July 2005 to August 2009
- 234,308,576 – Combined career prize money (US dollars)
