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Battle of Surfaces

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The Battle of Surfaces
Spain Rafael Nadal vs. Switzerland Roger Federer
Set 1 2 3
Spain Rafael Nadal 7 4 712
Switzerland Roger Federer 5 6 610
Date2 May 2007
LocationPalma Arena
Palma de Mallorca, Spain
World rankingsSpain Rafael Nadal: 2
Switzerland Roger Federer: 1

The Battle of Surfaces was a men's tennis exhibition match that was held on May 2, 2007,[1] between Roger Federer, the then top-ranked men's singles player, and Rafael Nadal, the then world No. 2 in men's singles.[2] The match was played in the capital city of Nadal's home island, Palma de Mallorca, in front of a home crowd at Palma Arena. Nadal won a competitive match 7–5, 4–6, 7–6(12–10).[2][3] The event was almost cancelled the night before when the grass surface had to be replaced after being infested with worms.[4]

The match

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The match was played on a unique court with a clay surface on one side of the net and grass on the other. The court cost $1.63 million to create and took 19 days to prepare.[5] At the time, Federer had won 48 straight matches on grass courts, going five straight years undefeated on grass, while Nadal had 72 straight wins on clay, going three straight years undefeated on clay.[6][7] Rafael Nadal was also leading the head-to-head between the two players 7–3, with a 5–0 record on clay while Roger Federer had won their only meeting on grass.[8]

Before the match, Federer said,

We are both looking forward to this absolutely new event. The idea really appeals to me as we both dominate one of the surfaces. Rafa holds the record of 72 victories in series on clay and I have not been defeated on grass since 48 matches. It'll be fun to find out what it's like to play on a court with mixed surfaces! And it ought to be interesting to see who chooses the better tactic. People have been talking about this event for quite a while. Now it's coming up pretty soon already and I like the fact that the stadium - which is very nice, by the way - is located on Majorca, Rafa's home. He has been to Basel, after all, and now I've got the opportunity to play at his place for once.[9]

After the match, Nadal said,

It has been a nice experience, although before the match I thought it would be a disaster because I felt it would be very difficult for me to adapt to the court.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Marcus Christenson (May 3, 2007). "Nadal claims Federer scalp in battle of the surfaces". The Guardian. Retrieved March 24, 2016.
  2. ^ a b "Nadal beats Federer to win battle of surfaces". Reuters. 2007-05-02. Retrieved 2021-02-17.
  3. ^ "The Day Federer & Nadal Battled on GRASS and CLAY ► Full Match". 12 April 2020. Archived from the original on 2 October 2022. Retrieved 2 October 2022 – via YouTube.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  4. ^ "The story when Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal played on a hybrid court for the Battle of Surfaces". Tennis Clubhouse. 2024-05-02. Retrieved 2024-05-02.
  5. ^ "Federer to face off with Nadal on customized court". Associated Press. May 1, 2007. Retrieved September 24, 2021.
  6. ^ "Nadal Wins the "Battle of Surfaces"". The Dong-a Ilbo. May 4, 2007. Retrieved November 26, 2010.
  7. ^ "Nadal wins 'clay-grass' thriller". BBC Sport. May 2, 2007. Retrieved March 24, 2016.
  8. ^ "The story when Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal played on a hybrid court for the Battle of Surfaces". Tennis Clubhouse. 2024-05-02. Retrieved 2024-05-02.
  9. ^ "The Battle of Surfaces". Roger Federer official website. April 14, 2007. Archived from the original on March 3, 2016. Retrieved November 26, 2010.
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