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Rafael Nadal recently recounted his 2005 Miami Open title clash against Roger Federer, which went to five sets.Nadal was just 18 years old in March 2005 when he took on then-World No. 1 Federer in the championship match. The Spaniard had defeated the Swiss maestro for the loss of just six games the year prior in Key Biscayne.
The then-teenager looked on course to repeat the above upset with a straight-sets victory against his future rival, having led 6-2, 7-6(4), 4-1 at one point of the match. Roger Federer, however, refused to go down so meekly. He broke the youngster back before taking the third set in a tiebreaker.The then-four-time Major winner soon started dominating the match, firing forehand winners at will. He won the following two sets with relative ease to register a 2-6, 6-7(4), 7-6(5), 6-3, 6-1 win in three hours and 43 minutes.While Rafael Nadal went on to achieve great things in his career despite his Miami Open heartbreak, the close nature of the loss must have hurt him deep down. On Sunday (March 24), the Instagram handle of TennisTV posted a highlight reel of the match.This month marks 19 years since the two legends contested their first-ever ATP final. While Federer was delighted at coming out the victor, the Spaniard rued the loss in his repost of the 20-time Major winner’s Instagram story.
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The two legends would go on to face off 38 more times on the main tour, playing their part in making tennis popular through their rivalry. Nadal emerged victorious in 24 out of their 40 career encounters, which included memorable title clashes at the 2009 Australian Open and the 2008 Wimbledon — considered two of the greatest matches in the history of tennis.
Rafael Nadal never got as close to winning the title in Miami as he did in his runner-up finish to Roger Federer from two sets up. The Spaniard has made 13 appearances at the ATP Masters 1000 tournament, dropping five overall championship matches.Nadal reached the summit clash at the Miami Open for the second time in his career in 2008. However, he was far from his best as Russia’s Nikolay Davydenko routed him 6-4, 6-2 in the final.The then-World No. 1 reached his third final in Miami in 2011, and it seemed plausible that he would break his duck at the event. Novak Djokovic played spoilsport, though, coming from a set down to win 4-6, 6-3, 7-6(4).Rafael Nadal again lost to the Serb three years later in his fourth final appearance, albeit with a meager scoreline of 3-6, 3-6. The Spaniard’s luck didn’t improve in 2017, as Roger Federer turned back the clock by beating him 6-3, 6-4 in the final to complete the elusive ‘Sunshine Double’ for the third time
