New York dreams of first Nadal and Federer showdown
Blame the hubris of corporate America if you like. In 2008, kit suppliers Nike became so excited about the prospect of a US Open final between Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal they commissioned wild-haired boxing promoter Don King to hype it, using the fight-style moniker “Grapple in the Apple”.
Unfortunately, tennis is not boxing, where you know the identity of your next opponent months in advance. And it is not WWE wrestling either, where convenient results can be arranged. Nike rather forgot this when it launched its campaign before the US Open had even started.
Sure enough, Murphy’s Law intervened, and events stubbornly refused to follow script. Federer might have fulfilled his part of the bargain, but Nadal lost to a 21-yearold Andy Murray in the semi-final.
That near-miss proved to be the beginning of a decade-long jinx. Despite four more close shaves – two of which involved match points to set up the dream final – the twin titans of modern tennis have still never played each other in New York. Not even in an exhibition at Madison Square Garden.
Today, as the US Open completes its quarter-finals, we are back on the brink for a sixth time. Federer faces old rival Juan Martin del Potro, while Nadal will take on a cocky young buck in Andrey Rublev. Should both win, they will reconvene on Friday for their 38th meeting overall. Or instalment XXXVIII, as Don King might call it.
The omens are encouraging. For the first time since Novak Djokovic entered his pomp in 2011, Rafa and Roger arrived in New York as the pre-eminent figures in the game. On the ATP points chart for 2017, they have both earned well over 7,000, knocking Alexander Zverev (4,175) into a distant third place. Among the fans, they have never been more popular, supplementing their old charisma with the extra frisson that surrounds great athletes in the twilight of their careers.
Arthur Ashe Stadium was largely deserted yesterday for the first men’s quarter-final – which pitted 12th seed Pablo Carrena Busta against diminutive Argentine Diego Schwartzman – but every one of its 23,000 seats will be taken if the long-awaited derby should happen.
So what are the chances of the Big Grapple finally being delivered? Both men looked scratchy early in this tournament, after setbacks in the build-up. Federer’s concern was the back muscle he tweaked during the Montreal final against Zverev just over three weeks ago.
Nadal came in feeling short of his usual implacable focus after losing to Nick Kyrgios and 18-year-old Denis Shapovalov in his two hardcourt build-up events.
Yet as the days have passed, both have established their ascendancy. And Monday’s fourth-round matches passed almost without incident – except for the brief “bottom rub” that Federer received from a physio after the second set of his 6-4, 6-2, 7-5 win over Philipp Kohlschreiber. He surged through in 1hr 50min, while Nadal was even more hasty, taking care of Alexandr
Great chance: Rafael Nadal faces 19-year-old Andrey Rublev in the quarter-finals Dolgopolov in 1hr 41min. The superiority of both is so obvious bookmakers are now operating an either-or policy. Sam Querrey, the third favourite, is a remote 13-1.
Few punters have much faith in either of today’s opponents. Rublev is a remarkable 95-1 for the title, even after he has disposed of two top-15 opponents in straight sets. Rublev might be the owner of a huge forehand, but few believe a 19-year-old will be able to cope with the pressure of the occasion, as well as Nadal’s legendary tenacity.
Normally, del Potro would stand as a significant roadblock but what shape he will start in after his fiveset, three-and-half-hour, fourthround win against Dominic Thiem. The prevailing conditions, then, would seem to be set fair.
Meanwhile, Jamie Murray and Bruno Soares’ defence of their doubles title came to an end with a quarter-final defeat by Jean-julien Rojer and Horia Tecau. The Scottish-brazilian pair had eased into the last eight without dropping a set but had a nightmare start and could not recover, losing 6-1, 6-2.