I will always remember this match , I was 14 and bored in summer days and I accidentally put on a sport channel and didn't know anything about tennis back then , and I was shocked by the strength of Nadal and his play ! , it was the game that left me in love with Nadal and tennis forever!.
I can relate a bit. For me it was 2005 FO semifinal. I watched and wondered, "Who is this kid? By the end of the match I said, "I think I found my favourite player!"
To see Nadal and Federer play in their youth and prime is a delight. Roger performing his ballet on the court and making it look like Swan Lake. Effortless. Easy. Poetry in motion. Rafa, just a boy, but a man none the less. His intensity during the big points was in attack mode. Running down every ball and not breathless from his speed. Here it is 2021; Nadal lost to Djokovic in the semi-finals of the French Open. Roger struggling to regain after his knee surgeries and loss of play. Novak on the upswing and wanting to be the GOAT. It was a painful loss for us Rafa fans. 2022 will be a different outcome. We all know who The King Of Clay is. We all know Roland Garros is The House of Nadal. There would not be a statue erected in his honor if I was not speaking truth. Nadal Is My Champion!
@@andyroo9381 yeah man those djokovic fans now bragging about djokovic beating nadal 2 times in roland garros while federer non (even though both times nadal was injured) also djokovic is now taking advantage of nadal and federer s absence and takes 1 slam after the other having to fave the weakest generation of tennis the world has ever seen and they call this man the goat like come on
2011 was closer, Fed was redlining his game for the first 2 sets, had set point at 5-2 in the first, the second went to tie break, so It could have gone either way. But he really couldn't push It to the fifth set ever
Nadal is the king of clay and mental fortitude. He only got better after this. I gotta say I miss how awesome this Federer was though. What a joy to watch. So smooth
I'm a Fedal fan, with Nadal being my favorite player. But Nadal is not quite as mentally tough as Djokovic. Nadal's biggest strengths is his tactic skills and Warrior-like fighting spirit.
@@TheTmat007 You can't say that....Even Roger has the mental strength of an Alien. All three do. you cannot win so much without it. Some show it it in different ways at different times.
If i were in that box i would have cried my heart out on that day... what a beautiful game played by that kid... his face at 32:29 speaks volumes... he really deserved to win...uncle Toni.. seems to take it in his stride!! it is very moving to see an uncle-nephew relationship so honest and deep... the milk of human kindness must be running deep in them both....
I remember not sleeping much the night before, waking up at 7am with sweaty hands and turning on this match. Rafa was riding that winning streak, I was 14 and just a year into my Rafa fan-dom. Ahh to be young again.
I had been out of tennis for a long time, dating back to the Becker-Edberg years, then in 2004 was talking to someone asking them who is the current best, she said "Federer," the only guy who can beat him is this guy named "Nadal." I've been a Nadal fan ever since. Thank you to both for the memories.
so little separated Rafa and Roger in this match... RF used his sudden attack style so often that he kept beating Rafa very well... Rafa loves to get that mud on his clothes and his hands... the mud even forms a heart on his back... awesome sight...@ 29:28... does not have the same love for grass... Great brand ambassador for RG...Clay court...Great to see the brother-sister having so much affection for each other...
I always thought this was the best chance for federer to win his first roland garros and stop nadal from becoming dominant on clay but it wasn't to be.. He just could not keep his nerves.. Had he won this match.. He would always have had an extra edge over Nadal for their future matches.. Because this was clay court and best of 5 sets match.. and Nadal just started to be on different level after this win..
Nadal is too strong on clay for Federer, just imagine a 18 years boy who can lead the odds list on his DEBUT at Roland Garros 2005, it is unbelievable and crazy. Maybe Federer deserved a win against Nadal at Roland Garros, but I think it would be not more than once. Nadal can still dominate Federer on clay if he lost Federer in 2006 French Open. It is only Djokovic who can push Nadal to the extreme limit, such as winning 8 consecutive games in 2012, a historic five set semi-final in 2013 and got a convincing 3:0 victory in 2015 at Roland Garros.
Does anyone remember a Nadal game where a ball boy started bleeding from his nose and Nadal gave him one of his towels for the ball boy to clean up? I think it was a match from the first rounds of Roland Garros 2006.
@@jayap3557 nah dude. He missed. Those are the ones you want back. Just like he missed that drop shot by a hair in 2011 that would’ve sealed the first set. When stuff like that happens I feel like roger can’t shrug it off sometimes. Like the djokovic 2019 final, when he blew the 2 match points on his serve. But he still had Deuce with serve. I’m sure any player would sign up for that situation in a heartbeat
Any sane mind watching these highlights can see the superiority of Federer in terms of skills and technique, but Nadal is just a mental giant and he was super fast back then.
@@farhatk6054 that's because the video guy has included only the beauty-floating-strokes that Federer made... but Rafa was forcing every kind of error from Fed... he even made him swear and rattle his raquet a few times... nobody.. repeat nobody... like that 19 year old...for a century to come...
@@farhatk6054 lol. Just because his game is prettier does not mean more skilled. Nadal is flat out better. Nadal and Djokovic are 1 and 2 all time well see which order. Federer is 9th on my all time list.
@@KarabauPlay What are you talking about? Federer was just turning 25 in 2006 and had his best season ever that year. By the way, Nadal beat Federer back in 2004 at hard court in 2 sets.
I'm a huge Fed fan, and Nadal is something special. Mentally he had the edge because he got nothing to lose anyways even in defeat at that moment of time. Meanwhile, Federer was considered the best in history already, and had all the pressure in the world to chase history. How I wish Federer won this FO than the 2009 one, maybe the mental edge will shift a little bit early.
@DS shut up kid, you dont know what your talking about 🤣. You probably start watching tennis in youtube. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-r8EM6ZGHa2g.html
@DS your just fvcking missing the point dont you, Im not saying he's the best in history. Im just telling you that as early as 2006, Federer is chasing goat status, the pressure was on his shoulder and I given you a proof 🤣. You really dont know what your saying by giving this irrelevant answer. Your the one who is the joke here...
I know right? He can at least tie Borg's record! Almagro in 2008: He's gonna be 65 and still win Roland Garros. 2020: Rafa is still winning Roland Garros. 😂😂😂
Yes right this was the best chance for federer to beat him on French Open as federer was in great shape..young also..had he beaten him in this match.. federer could have also won 3-4 RG titles.. just couldn't keep his nerves on important points as he always did against nadal before 2017..
@@intekhabkhan6583 Guess the tennis Gods decided to break the great fortunes of federer...he was on top honors for far too long... that's how the cookie crumbles...usually
It's very strange. I have watched federer since he was a kid almost and he was moving so well in the first set. Almost poetic. Such a shame he dropped off.
@@yussepig6629 he did. He was up 40-0 at the beginning of the second set and got broken after making many errors. After that it looked like he did not want to be there.
I have always felt the 2006 RG Final was Federer's best chance to defeat Nadal at Roland Garros. As the years went on, I think Roger lacked the confidence to ever win against Rafa, at Roland Garros. Nadal is a different beast in Paris. He has only been defeated 3 times there. Rafa has never lost a Men's Final at Roland Garros. Either way, this particular match was a great one for both.
Not to take anything away from Nadal, but Roger’s defense at 26:05 was nuts. And starting with that point he was quite clutch and very nearly came back. If he had gotten that set, and taken it to a fifth, he actually would have had a chance to win.
It also happen in 2005 semis, Fed also had some unbelieveable miss with one each cost him a set. Look at the point at 3-2 40-15 in 2005's 4th set. The same shot also threw away his 1st and only Rome Masters in 2006
Feeling very sad that Federer could have won that match.Federer is supreme in movements in court, back hand ,forehannd, service, slices, return every thing he had.but lack of mental tough ness made him loss the trophy.
So many classic examples in this match of why Roger could never manage to beat Rafa on clay. Most rallies are 15+ shots long and there are very few shots Roger can hit that Nadal can’t get. No quick and easy points for him like on grass. Nadal immediately takes control of most points, and Federer is stuck there retrieving everything and there’s almost nothing he can do to get back on the offensive. He can get to most of Nadal’s shots but it’s not enough, and eventually he’ll miss a shot by an inch or hit something too weakly. It would be much easier if he could come to the net after a good shot, but that’s not an option on such a slow surface since he’ll just get passed. The main attributes he had in his prime, his forehand and talent, he couldn’t rely on them to beat Nadal. He couldn’t out-aggressive Nadal here like he could on other surfaces. Plus, Federer can’t replicate what Djokovic and Soderling did to beat Nadal. They blasted everything back flat like a laser, the clay was faster than in 2006 and the conditions were milder, AND Nadal was not at his best on those days. But because Federer has a one-hander and hits with so much wrist and arc on the ball, it gives Nadal even more time to get everything. Shots that would be winners for Federer on any other surface are standard retrievals here. Let’s face it, anybody in Roger’s position, including me, wouldn’t know what to do. Roger had no options or reliable go-to strategies. Although, he did have chances. His only way to win would be by reaching a fifth set, which he was just shy of doing in 2005, 2006, 2007, and 2011. He still *could* have won those, but it was a 10% chance at best. He puts up good fights, 2nd best on clay in my opinion.
Valid points, Federer's game diminishes by some percentage because of the slowness of the court. Meanwhile, the same court amplifies Nadal's game by like 10 fold lol. The only way to beat Nadal was to beat him baseline per baseline. I think Federer can beat him more if he had a two handed backhand...
wow. I never knew Fed's lead 4-0 1st set....I'll bet people were thinking here is another Federer whipping boy at that stage....15 years on and still cannot beat him at the F.O. Rafa can start a bit nervous in big games..but after a set or two he simply goes into beat mode. The final the year after Federer won the 1st set 6-1...Rafa still wins. Simply could not beat him.
Another whipping boy?? Nobody thought that ffs. Nadal was already leading in h2h. Had defeated him twice on hard. Defeated him in previous French Semifinals. Everybody knew by the end of 2005 that he is the real deal.
Para la mayoria si por el estilo de juego y porque Nadal es el rey de este torneo. Yo creo que depende del estilo de juego para tener mas chances de ganar uno u otro Slam.
Federer wons 20 slams.9 before the coming of Nadal and Djokovic,from 2003 to 2006,against players such as Hewitt,Roddick,Lopez,Kuerten and Philippoussis(he always lose the finals of Rolland Garros against Nadal).Nadal wons 19 slams against Federer and Djokovic,problably the greatest players of all times.Djokovic has 17 slams,against Nadal and Federer. Just Facts:If you take the difficoult and the competitors,Nadal is the Greatest of the Greatest
@SK And then Grandpa Federer is kicking NADAL ass everywhere. Most weak era is post 2014 which Nadal and Faker are culturing with worst young generations. Federer didn't list to Murray in slams but Nadal and Djokovic lost to him 🤣. Nadal has not taken a set against Djokovic for last 8 years on HC. GOAT 🤣🤣
@@tennisfan599 actually in the trophy ceremony, Nadal himself said Federer was the most complete player. After all, he did win 3/4 slams and only lost 3-4 matches in 2006.
@@tennisfan599 ok, still not very many matches lost, and most of those were against Nadal on clay. So point being, not too many players were beating him.
I will always remember this match because Federer was destroying Nadal and then at the start of the 2nd set there was a strange call which Federer didn't acknowledge and it actually made him look a bit of a cheat. From that point on he was a different player and then he always had a mental issue with Nadal. It took him years to sort it, and now look at his results lately against Nadal. Nadal couldn't touch him except on clay.
Nadal was very fast He was chasing every ball and this was affecting federer both physically and mentally So sad Fed didn't convert the triple bp in game 4 set 3 😢
This right here 2006 both at their prime, nothing can touch this level of tennis and skill, both of these legends would wipe the flor with djokovic and anyone else, it doesnt get better then this.
@@EndoftheTownProductions I watched Pete since 1994.... not even close.... the idea that you would even consider Pete anywhere near the Federer at absolute best in his career and Nadal who hit his prime... no
Viendo una vez más este partido y muxos d e stos dos en tierra , no me cabe duda que Federer era muxo más que Nadal técnicamente y que le afecto nada más lo psicológico , por más números mayores q logro Nadal en mi juicio Federer es mejor y así lo demostró en os enfrentamientos últimos de sus carreras,
This young guy nadal got lucky here but he seriously needs to change his style if he wants to play until his 30s. U cant run around your backhand all the time and play every point as it's your last...
Technically, Federer was way superior to Nadal. There is really no doubt about it even on clay. They way Nadal made it physical and mental was just beyond me and the sole reason why he won in 2006.
Nothing technical-vechnical... that is just convenient prop-word that people use to pull someone down and put someone else up there... when it comes to Rafa in this match, we can call it tactical/strategic (tho he himself says - "i dont know strategy...i just improve the fundamentals - like serve/volley/slice" - and that is quite agreeable) ...to put it simply... Rafa was just 1% better than RF in this game... they were almost equal tactically/mentally/physically/technically... may be that 1% happened because RF was under global pressure of having to be the no1...and was seeing that prospect dimming away once again - for the 2nd time :-)
as uncle tony said is not that nadal is better is federer ,its more than nadal style of play its very unconvenient for federer style of play single hand backhand.
