Roger Federer set to play ‘special’ final match of career on Friday with Rafael Nadal
When Federer played Nadal in the final at Wimbledon in 2011, he had no idea it would be his final tune-up for the year. “I know that he’s been having a few setbacks but I wanted to be here on this court to know that I could beat this guy,” Federer said.
Now Federer is at the peak of his powers, and he’ll be playing in his final tune-up for the year on Friday at the US Open when he gets to see the final tune-up of his career against number one-ranked Rafael Nadal.
Nadal has been having a few setbacks as well. He’s had some injuries, including his right knee, but he’s been playing well on the surface, and Federer knows he’ll be in good shape because of it. In fact, that’s how he found out that he was going to be on the court against Federer. The Spaniard called him up and suggested he get in the match to show Nadal a few things. Federer declined, but his father, Roger Federer Sr., who coached Nadal when he was at Wimbledon, reminded him the night before.
Federer Sr. told him that he would have to get up at 4 a.m. the next day to play. Federer took it like it was a no-brainer, though he wouldn’t have been able to sleep normally on Friday, so he went to bed early and made sure he had plenty of sleep the night before.
When Federer woke up at 4 a.m., he grabbed a quick breakfast and went to the locker room to dress for court, to check on his preparation for the match.
“I’ve been getting ready for this opponent for a while,” Federer said. “I went to bed last night and got really really tired. I thought he could handle it but, obviously, you hope that he is, so I did not sleep any better than I normally do on Sunday to make sure I was able to go into it. I have had some extra sleep in the last few days and I’ve