Why watching Federer, Murray and Djokovic makes you miss Nadal

Scene 1 Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer, Andy Murray, David Ferrer. Wait… that’s not right. David Ferrer vs Novak Djokovic never feels like much of a match (the 6-2, 6-2, 6-1 scoreline notwithstanding). No disrespect to Ferrer – he is going to be world number 4 and is probably the best retriever in the business but he isn’t a match for Djokovic; he isn’t a match for Djokovic at his best; and he certainly doesn’t have the weapons to hurt Djokovic. Scene 2 Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer, Andy Murray, Rafael Nadal. Now, that’s how it should be. It just seems more complete. The top four seeds… the semi-final line-up… evenly-matched players… fun… glory… madness. That is the epic line-up that we have all just got used to seeing. That is a line-up that guarantees quality in an age where there are few guarantees. Rafael Nadal has been away from too long. He is missed. [caption id=“attachment_601156” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Rafael Nadal. AFP[/caption] Take your pick? What would you prefer? It’s a rhetorical question that we all know the answer to. Nadal was never my favourite player. He never had the silky elegance of a Roger Federer or the allround game that Djokovic flaunts these days. Andy Murray was never someone I like or hated, he was just there – a presence that didn’t quite register till later in 2012. But Nadal with his raw muscular game and intensity was the arch-rival and the anti-thesis to the other three. He was the man capable of pushing Federer and Djokovic; he was capable to bringing out the best in their games and throwing it right back at them with interest, he would fight for every point even when most think it is past him and he was a south paw, a left-hander. And somehow, he brought it all together, he brought them all together and he beat them. Of the four, he is the only one with a winning record against each of the other three. And that tells you something. When Federer was at the peak of his powers – only one man in the world stood up to him. It began at the French Open and on clay but soon he started dominating Federer on other surfaces as well. They have played 28 times, and Nadal leads their head-to-head series 18–10 overall and 8–2 in Grand Slam tournaments. Against Djokovic – the rivalry has been much closer and in the last year or so, it has perhaps been dominated by the Serb. Federer was older but Djokovic is almost the same age as Nadal. Djokovic and Nadal have met 33 times (which is the sixth-most head-to-head meetings in the Open Era) with Nadal having a 19–14 advantage. Andy Murray has only recently joined the Grand Slam winners team but if there was a reason for him not doing it earlier, then it was probably Nadal. Nadal and Andy Murray have met on 18 occasions since 2007, with Nadal leading 13–5. At the Grand Slams, Nadal leads 6–2 (3–0 at Wimbledon, 1–0 at the French Open, 1–1 at the Australian Open & 1–1 at the US Open) and whenever Murray beat Nadal, he ran into Federer next. Hard luck but you have to beat the best. The men’s field is incredibly talented – Tsonga, Del Potro, Ferrer, Gasquet, Tipsarevic, Berdych make up the top 10. But even in that group, the top four stood head and shoulders above the rest. Their intensity and mental focus meant they didn’t slip up unless the opponents played out of the world. On their own, Federer, Murray and Djokovic are pretty capable of creating magic but with Nadal on the other side, the epic scale just seems that much grander. Inadvertently, they must all be pretty happy to not to have him at the other end – but as champions they all crave a challenge. And Nadal is nothing if he isn’t that – always the challenger, always pushing the boundaries, always pushing himself to breaking point. Perhaps that is why he is missed most of all. P.S. Nadal has announced that he will return to action in mid-February at the Brazil Open but that’s too long.