Roger Federer has claimed his seventh title at the Swiss Indoors Open after battling past Rafael Nadal 6-3, 5-7, 6-3.
The match was the 34th meeting between the two players with Nadal currently leading the head-to-head 23-10. Despite trailing the head-to-head, Federer maintained a dominant record against the Spaniard on indoor surfaces, winning four out of their previous five matches.
The blockbuster clash began with two consecutive holds of serve. Nadal settled into the match immediately by displaying solid tennis as he comfortably consolidated the first game with a backhand down the line. In contrast Federer encountered greater difficulty in his opening service game after a double fault followed by a wild backhand resulted in Nadal grabbing the first break point of the match. The Spaniard was unable to convert as the Swiss top seed bounced back by saving the break point before levelling at 1-1. Federer was the first to strike in the match as he grabbed a crucial break during a long fifth game of the opening set. The 34-year-old squandered two break point chances before being successful with his third after he returned a forehand right onto the line, setting off a big cheer from his home crowd. Nadal had a chance to break immediate back, but it was saved after an outstanding forehand cross-court shot from Federer put the game back to deuce as he opened up a 4-2 lead.
Watch Roger Federer save a break point at full stre-e-e-e-e-etch! https://t.co/V1qmjuaqoX
— TennisTV (@TennisTV) November 1, 2015
After opening up the lead, the Swiss No.1 increased the quality of his game in what was a highly competitive opening set. With Nadal serving behind 3-5, Federer launched another attack. After an sudden injection of pace during a lengthy rally from Federer, Nadal returned the ball out to hand his rival three set points. The 34-year-old only required one of them after he took the set with a straightforward shot at the net. During the first set Federer won 68% of his first serves compared to Nadal who produced 47%.
Leading by a set, there was a fresh injection in Federer’s game as he produced a world class opening service game at the start of the second set, taking it to love. Nadal was able to end Federer’s three-game winning streak in the following game, but was still experiencing trouble against the Swiss players aggressive game play. After three games in the second set, an on court trainer was called for Nadal, who put some white tape on Nadal’s right knee. The purpose of the tape was to ease the pressure applied on to his knee. Throughout the week, Nadal has had his knee taped.
As the next couple games going accordingly to serve, there was little to distinguish between the two. Federer had a chance to lead 4-2 but failed to take advantage as Nadal edged his way back to keep his hopes alive in the match. With both players remaining consistent on their serve, Nadal’s biggest test in the occurred when he was serving to stay in the match at 4-5. The test was an easy task for Nadal, who level at 5-5 with a powerful forehand shot to the right of Federer. Despite the majority second set being about Federer’s dominating the rallies, a costly unforced error from the Swiss’ racket handed the Spinard a break point. The error was a serious blow to the Swiss hopes as Nadal broke to lead 6-5, silencing the home crowd. The opportunity seized by Nadal was taken advantage of as the world No.7 bossed Federer round the court, producing a smash of the net to take the second set. Throughout the second set Nadal produced just six winners compared to Federer’s twenty.
Watch @rafaelnadal hit an absolute scorcher of a winner at 141 kph https://t.co/l08KxYitSA — TennisTV (@TennisTV) November 1, 2015
The enormity of the task was important for both men. Federer was bidding for a record 7th title in Basel whilst Nadal was seeking to win his first title on an indoor hard-court since the 2005 Madrid Open.
During the early part of the final set both players held their serve easily in a similar pattern to the first two sets. Nadal handed Federer a break point chance to lead 3-1, after a double fault before saving it with a strong passing shot as he held his nerve to move to 2-2. Nadal had a small chance in the 7th game as he lead Federer 30-15, two points away from breaking, but was unsuccessful as Federer hit his way out of trouble to nudge ahead 4-3. The closeness of the third set was finally ended in the following game following a costly unforced error at the net from the Spaniard gave Federer a chance to grab the critical break. Federer was able to break for a 5-3 lead after a second consecutive unforced error from Nadal. After exactly two hours Federer grabbed his first championship point with an ace down the centre of the court. The first match point was saved after a return from Nadal. Despite losing his first championship point, he had his second opportunity after some fantastic play at the net. The 17-time Grand Slam champion was successful on his second attempt after a deep shot forced Nadal to return the shot out.
After suffering six consecutive losses to Nadal, the triumph in Basel is Federer’s first win over the 29-year-old since the semifinals of the 2012 Indian Wells Masters. Basel is the fifth tournament where the 34-year-old has won the title seven or more times. The four other tournaments are Wimbledon, Cincinnati and Dubai, where he has won the title seven times, as well as Halle where he has won eight.
The loss means that Nadal is still yet to win an indoor hard-court title since 2005. Speaking to the after his defeat, he thanked the crowd for their support.
“This week there has been a huge support, a little bit less today but I understand”. Nadal joked with the Swiss crowd.
“Many thanks for everybody making me feel special this week and I hope to be back this week”.
The title in Basel is the 88th title in Federer’s career. Speaking in his native language Federer paid tribute to his team.
“It has been a fantastic week, thank you to all my team for all of your hard work”. He said.
“It is always a highlight of my season coming to Basel”.
2015 is the seventh year in Federer’s career where he has won six of more titles within a season.
