Memorable moments: the greatest match of all time or Nadal and Federer’s galactic battle for Wimbledon

All Grand Slams are highly prized and respected, but one towers above them all. The sacred Wimbledon on the grass of London. In 2008, we saw one of the most beautiful finals matches in history, the best in the eyes of many.

The year 2008 was marked by the Big Three. Both Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic managed to win at least one Grand Slam. Only the Spanish tennis player dominated two tournaments.

In Australia, Djokovic won, on clay in Paris, who else but Nadal. When it came to Wimbledon, which in turn was one of Federer’s favourites, he was expected to lift the trophy above his head.

And so it seemed. On his way to the final, the Swiss elegance did not lose a single set. He successively eliminated Hrbate, Söderling, Gicgul, Hewitt, Ancic and Safin.

But on the other side of the pavilion was Federer’s eternal rival, who also went through the tournament like a knife through butter.

Nadal didn’t keep his 100% record, but still losing a single set on the way to the final was great. The Mallorca native dealt with Beck, Gulbis, Kiefer, Yuzhny, Murray and Schüttler. And so came the grand final.

Nadal got off to a better start. He dominated the first two sets 6:4 and was looking for his first Wimbledon victory. But that’s when the Swiss tennis player turned it on full blast.

The third set went to a tiebreak, in which Federer won 7:5. The fourth set also had to be decided by a tiebreak, but this time it went even further and after a score of 10:8, the Swiss finally tied the set at 2:2.

The phenomenal performances of both tennis players and one of the most beautiful final matches in the history of Wimbledon were crowned by the fifth set. The tiebreak was no longer decided and the match continued.

In the end, Nadal was happier, winning the fifth set 9:7 and after a tremendous fight, he fell to the floor to celebrate a heroic victory. Many pundits and spectators alike subsequently hailed this match as the best in tennis history.

Source: YouTube, Wimbledon