The 2017 Australian Open Men's Singles final was the championship tennis match of the Men's Singles tournament at the 2017 Australian Open. Highly regarded as one of the greatest matches in tennis history, it was contested between Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, ranked 17th and 9th in the world respectively. It was their record ninth and final meeting in a Grand Slam final in their rivalry, and their first meeting in a Grand Slam final since the 2011 French Open. In a rematch of the 2009 Australian Open final, which Nadal won in five sets, Federer won the duel in five sets, beating Nadal for the first time in a Grand Slam since the 2007 Wimbledon final. He also trailed Nadal 3–1 in the final set but won five games in a row to win the title. This ended a six-match losing streak against Nadal in Grand Slam events. Having lost their previous three encounters, this was the first and only time Federer defeated Nadal at the Australian Open and also marked Federer's first Grand Slam victory over Nadal outside the grass courts of Wimbledon. Federer extended his record of Grand Slam singles titles to 18.
Due to their rivalry, the age of both players, its relevance in popular and critical discussions regarding either players' claim as the 'greatest player of all time' and other implications towards their legacies, and speculation of the match being Federer and Nadal's last final contest against one another, the match, referred by the moniker 'Fedal XXXV', was considered a 'dream final'. The quality of the performances by both players during the match led to it being dubbed at the time one of the most important sporting events ever played, as well as one of the greatest tennis matches of all time.
Background Federer and Nadal's participation in this tournament marked their major returns from their 2016 seasons that saw sidelining injuries. Federer, in particular, had not played a tournament since the 2016 Wimbledon semi-final, having aggravated his surgically repaired knee to the extent that he called off the rest of his 2016 season, including missing out the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio that he was keen to compete in for the singles gold medal that eluded him and also playing the highly anticipated mixed doubles pairing with compatriot and fellow tennis great, Martina Hingis. Unable to defend his Cincinnati Open and Swiss Basel Indoors titles and his runner up position at the 2015 Wimbledon and US Open, Federer fell from No. 3 to No. 16 at the end of the 2016, dropping out of the top 5 for the first time since March 2014 and dropping out of the top 10 rankings for the first time since 2002. Contrasting Federer's consistent semi-finals and finals appearances in Grand Slams from 2015 Wimbledon onwards, Nadal failed to make a Grand Slam quarter-final since the 2015 French Open. His last Grand Slam title win was the 2014 French Open, and his last appearance in the Australian Open singles final was against Stan Wawrinka in 2014, which he lost in four sets. Nadal, however, won the Monte-Carlo Masters title in 2016, while Federer, for the first time since 2000, did not win a tournament title. Before this tournament, Nadal had reached the quarter-finals of the 2017 Brisbane International, losing to Milos Raonic, while Federer had played in the 2017 Hopman Cup in singles and mixed round robins with Belinda Bencic, winning two and losing one match in both singles and mixed doubles (the Swiss team did not qualify for the final).
En route to the final, both Federer and Nadal made exceptional campaigns. Federer scored three wins against top-10 seeded players, including a five-set win over Kei Nishikori in the fourth round, which became Federer's 200th win over top-10 players in his career and becoming the first man ever to achieve this feat, and culminating in a gutsy five-set win in the semi-finals over compatriot Stan Wawrinka after surviving several break points in the fifth. Nadal meanwhile scored two top-10 wins, as well as ending Grigor Dimitrov's unbeaten 2017 win streak of ten matches in the semi-finals in a gruelling five-set match that lasted 4 hours and 56 minutes; during the final set, Nadal was in trouble being down 3–4, 15–40, but managed to recover to defeat the Bulgarian in what up until that point was the best match of the tournament. When top seeds Andy Murray and Novak Djokovic were surprisingly knocked out early in the draw, a final between Federer and Nadal was anticipated early due to the two men being on opposite sides of the draw.
Build-up
Federer's entry in this tournament already drew substantial and critical media attention due to his 6-month layoff from his knee injury, his continued years-long quest for his 18th singles major, and his consistent form and reflected appearances in two semi-finals and two finals in four previous Grand Slam tournaments despite his advancing age. The final between Federer and Nadal further developed from that attention and the match was immediately regarded by fans, fellow tennis contemporaries, pundits and analysts, and the media as a 'dream final' and, more importantly, a match of historical significance for both players, as agreed by many past legends such as Andy Roddick and Pam Shriver as well as renowned tennis analyst Mary Carillo. Due to their respective ages of 35 and 30, the increasing number of years since their last respective Grand Slam title wins, and the perceived declines from their prime years which saw some critics voicing opinions that neither player would ever win a singles major again, it was critically speculated that this tournament final may mark the last time that Federer and Nadal would meet and contest each other in a Grand Slam final. Furthermore, many other pundits and analysts also agreed that this match could very well prove who between Federer and Nadal would be popularly and critically viewed as the "greatest tennis player of all time". Federer held the all-time count of Grand Slam singles titles at 17, while Nadal held the second all-time count of 14 tied with Pete Sampras and a dominant head-to-head 23–11 record against Federer. This final would either see Federer breaking his historic all-time record of 17 Grand Slam singles titles, or Nadal winning his 15th Grand Slam singles title which would break the tie between himself and Sampras' Grand Slam title count and subsequently narrow the Grand Slam title count gap between himself and Federer. Furthermore, should Nadal win, he would become the first man in the Open Era to achieve a double career Grand Slam, winning each of the Grand Slams at least twice in men's singles.
Numerous tennis players and legends voiced their opinions on the match and who would win, including Australian Open promotional interviews with Roy Emerson, Fred Stolle, John McEnroe, Lindsay Davenport, and Rod Laver, in addition to other media interviews with John Newcombe, Martina Navratilova, Lleyton Hewitt, Pat Rafter, Michael Chang, Mary Joe Fernández, and Andy Roddick. Federer's age, his last two disappointing four-set losses in Grand Slam tournament finals, his first tournament return from his six-month layoff and the fact that he had played two five set matches in the last 7 days at the age of 35 were all collectively cited against Federer's chances for winning the final, in addition to the popularly cited Nadal's dominant head-to-head record (including 3-0 against Federer in their previous Australian Open matches), and particular match-up against Federer's game. Players remarked that the court speed would favour Federer's game over Nadal's, and the media noted that Federer's game might be further helped by the courts being comparatively faster than the previous year's Australian Open, but this remains disputed. Further adding to Federer's chances to winning were their last encounter ending in Federer's favour at the 2015 Swiss Basel Indoors, the fact that, despite having played two five-set matches in the past week, Federer had had an additional day of rest compared to Nadal who had recently won his intensely contested five-set semi-final match against Grigor Dimitrov which lasted almost five hours, but most importantly, a noticeably improved and more aggressive backhand that might hold up better against Nadal's high-spinning forehand.
Match
James Keothavong of the UK was the chair umpire.
The match lasted 3 hours 38 minutes including a medical time-out for Federer after the fourth set. Federer won the first set 6–4 after breaking Nadal in the seventh game. Nadal won the second set 6–3 where he broke Federer twice, and Federer broke back once. The start of the third set saw a crucial momentum swing, where Federer saved three break points in his opening service game, all of which were saved by aces. After holding on to his serve, Federer subsequently broke Nadal twice to take the set 6–1. The fourth set was won by Nadal 6–3, and it came down to a fifth set.
Federer took an off-court medical time-out at the start of the fifth set. Upon resumption of play, Nadal broke Federer in the first game and was leading the final set 3–1. Federer, however, would prove to be too strong for Nadal afterwards. He broke back to level the set at 3–3. After holding his serve to take the lead 4–3, Federer went on to break Nadal's next service game, which included a 26-shot rally (the longest in the match) at deuce that featured incredible shots from both players that drew a standing ovation from the crowd that lasted nearly a full minute. Whilst serving for the championship at 5–3, Federer had to overcome a 15–40 deficit to reach championship point. On his second championship point, Federer hit a forehand winner that landed on the line of the alley on the deuce side. Nadal challenged the call, but, upon a Hawk-Eye review, the call was upheld, and Federer won the match.Christopher Clarey (2017). "Roger Federer, Defying Age, Tops Rafael Nadal in Australian Open Final," New York Times, January 29.
Statistics The match statistics followed a similar pattern to those at the 2009 Australian Open final, with a few exceptions: Federer had a higher break point conversion rate than Nadal, while Nadal won a higher percentage of points at the net.
The most striking difference between this match and past Fedal Slam finals is that Federer hit more than double the number of winners than Nadal, 73 to 35. Category Federer Nadal 1st serve % 85 of 138 = 62%110 of 151 = 73% Winning % on 1st serve65 of 85 = 76% 69 of 110 = 63% Winning % on 2nd serve 26 of 53 = 49%23 of 41 = 56% Aces20 4 Double faults 3 3 Winners73 35 Unforced errors 5728 Winners-UFE+16 +7Forehand winners2820Backhand winners149 Receiving points won59 of 151 = 39% 47 of 138 = 34% Break point conversions6 of 20 = 30% 4 of 17 = 24% Net approaches 29 of 40 = 73%10 of 12 = 83% Fastest serve207 km/h 200 km/h Average 1st serve speed185 km/h 177 km/h Average 2nd serve speed 147 km/h150 km/h Total points won150 of 289 = 52% 139 of 289 = 48% Source
Significance