Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer share one of the most iconic rivalries in tennis. Their matches have always garnered universal fame and played a major role in furthering the popularity of the sport. In his book, ‘Rafa: My Story’, Rafael Nadal talked about one of their most iconic match-ups that was later billed as the greatest match in the history of the sport. The finals of the Wimbledon Championships in 2008, in which Roger Federer was striving to win a record sixth consecutive Wimbledon title.

Dissecting his mindset during the match, Rafa reminisced about the stance of his opponent and what he did to stay calm and maintain consistency in his book.

Rafa talks about facing Federer in the 2008 Wimbledon finals

Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer had reached the finals of the grass-court major for a second consecutive year. Federer was looking to create a record of gaining six Wimbledon titles in a row, a feat that he would have achieved for the first time.

Rafa wrote, “He’d won so much, he’d been so dominant for so long, that a part of him was playing, as he had said once, ‘for history’.”

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But Rafa was not willing to lose, as gaining a grass-court major mattered equally to him. The player was striving to get his first Wimbledon title. He states, “Winning this match meant as much to him as it did to me; losing would be as painful for either of us.”

How did Rafael Nadal come out victorious in the match?

At that point, facing Federer seemed like the biggest challenge for Rafa. But he kept his calm. He states, “When Federer has these game, patches of utter brilliance, the only thing you can do is try and stay calm, wait for the storm to pass.” Furthermore, he shared the advice Toni Nadal, his uncle, used to give him, “As Toni feels he needs to remind me he is human too. His mental intensity will slacken, and you’ll have chance.”

The Spanish sensation claimed the first two sets. However, Federer could not stay passive for long and broke the Spaniard’s streak by winning the next two sets. The tie-breaker saw the rejuvenated form of Rafa, who stayed calm and used his aggressive game to overcome the resilient Swiss to claim his first Wimbledon title.

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After battling on the tour for almost two decades, the H2H series of two players favor the Spaniard, with a ratio of 24:16. Next time around, we will see Nadal and Federer on the same team in the Laver Cup. Fans will surely have to wait until the 2023 Australian Open to get another episode in the iconic Federer-Nadal rivalry.