An epic clash between Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal in the finals of the Australian Open 2017 is considered the best final match ever by fans. And they do not hesitate to state this on various social media platforms
The Australian Open marked the return of Federer to the Grand Slam after he last played in the semifinal of the 2016 Wimbledon Open. He was then out due to a knee injury and had to withdraw from the Rio Olympics. He couldn’t play the rest of the 2016 season.
Since he had not played any tennis in the second half of 2016, his ranking slipped, and entered the Australian Open as No. 17. On his way to the Finals, he defeated the then-top-10 players Tomas Berdych and Kei Nishikori and beat Stan Wawrinka in the semifinal.
It was also not an easy road for Nadal to the finals. He was playing his first Grand Slam final since he won the French Open in 2014. He defeated Marcos Baghdatis, Alexander Zverev, Gael Monfils, Milos Raonic, and Grigor Dimitrov on his way to the finals.
Federer was playing for his 18th Grand Slam Title and Nadal was fighting for his 15th Title. Federer had last won an Australian Open in 2010 and Nadal in 2009. The final of 2017 was a rematch of the 2009 Australia Open in which Nadal defeated Federer in five sets.
Federer was 35 years old and Nadal was 30 when they met each other in the final. So, people speculated this final could be their last meet in a Grand Slam final. The match was pushed to the decider and Federer was trailing by 3-1. But it was Roger Federer’s historic comeback to win five straight games and win the set and eventually the Title.
One tennis fan shared the video of the Final recently on X, and captioned it as the “Best set ever”. But people agreed not just the best set but the best final ever.
#RogerFederer : Best Set Ever 🤩
— RF103 (@Yasser_RF103) October 24, 2023
Ausopen 2017 😍 #RForever pic.twitter.com/ly5noK5FdT
Roger Federer misses “everything about the game” after his retirement from tennis
Roger Federer bid adieu to his professional tennis career last year at the Laver Cup.
This year also he was there at the Laver Cup, but not as a player. In an interview after the first day of the 2023 Laver Cup in Vancouver, Federer mentioned that he doesn’t want to be a stranger to the game so he keeps coming to the tournaments. He has been spending time with his family and has been busy with other off-court commitments.
He said that he misses everything about tennis, the exciting moments spent on the court, break points saved, winning match points, holding trophies, taking selfies, etc. He also misses the places he used to travel in his playing days. He is also busy taking care of his four children and involved with his Foundation. He wants to make more time for tennis in the coming days and joked about being the captain of Team Europe in the future.
He played his last match at the Laver Cup last year, pairing with Nadal for a doubles match. He had an illustrious career spanning over 25 years with 20 Grand Slam Titles and many other records to his name.
