WIMBLEDON: After 11 years of waiting Roger Federer finally has a shot of getting revenge against Rafael Nadal on the grass.
In what is one of the most anticipated clashes of the entire tournament, the two will take to Center Court on Friday afternoon. Federer has so far spent nine hours and 23 minutes on the court and has dropped two sets. Doing so against Lloyd Harris in the first round and Kei Nishikori in the quarter-finals. Meanwhile, Nadal has spent slightly longer playing with his time amounting to 10 hours and 44 minutes. Losing only one set to Nick Kyrgios in the second round.
To wet your appetite ahead of the latest episode of the gripping tennis rivalry, here are the key numbers behind the two tennis greats.
One: Only once out of 12 appearances has Federer lost in the semi-finals at Wimbledon. That was to Milos Raonic in 2016.
Two: The No.2 ranking will be on the spot. Nadal will maintain the spot if he reaches the final. Should he fail to do so, Federer can overtake him by winning the title.
Three: It is the third time Nadal has reached a grand slam semi-final without playing a single seed. He also did so at the US Open in 2008 and 2017.
Four: It will be the fourth meeting between the two at Wimbledon and first since their marathon 2008 final. Where Nadal prevailed 9-7 in the decider. Federer leads their Wimbledon head-to-head 2-1.
Five: Nadal is two wins away from becoming the first man to win five grand slam titles after turning 30. His overall tally currently stands at 18, which is only two behind Federer.
40: It will be the 40th meeting between the two. Making it one of the most extensive rivalries in the Open. In the Open Era, it is ranked third for most tour-level match-ups. Nadal leads the head-to-head 24-15 with the breakdown being the following:-
–Grand slam matches: Nadal leads 10-3
–Masters Cup/Tour Finals: Federer leads 4-1
–Masters Series: Nadal leads 12-7
–ATP 500 (formerly International Series Gold): Draw 1-1
10: Nadal’s 10 wins over Federer in grand slam tournaments is more than any other player in history. His latest was at the French Open in May.
26: Nadal has won 26 out of 31 grand slam semi-finals contested. Although two of those losses occurred last year at Wimbledon (Djokovic) and US Open (retired against Juan Martin del Potro)
31: Federer is targeting a record 31st grand slam final and 12th at Wimbledon alone.
37 years and 340 days: A win would make Federer the third oldest man to reach the final of a grand slam in the Open Era.
38: Whoever wins on Friday will claim their 38th match win on the season. Becoming the first player on the ATP Tour to do this year.
100: Federer has won 100 matches at Wimbledon. He is the only player to have ever achieved the milestone at any grand slam tournament.
352: Federer has won more grand slam matches than any other player in history. At present, he has won 87 more than Nadal, whose current tally stands at 265. Between the two players is Novak Djokovic with 275 wins.
2010: The last time Nadal won Wimbledon. No other left-handed man has won the title since.
2019: Nadal has become the first player to qualify for the 2019 ATP Finals after reaching the last four at Wimbledon.