What Rafa did, not what Roger didn’t

Rafael Nadal has beaten Roger Federer 7-6, 6-3, 6-3 in the semi-finals of the Australian Open in Melbourne.

While much of the pre-match talk was about what Federer had to do -be aggressive- to beat Nadal at a slam for the first time since Wimbledon 2007, one important thing got forgotten. A very important thing, too.

Rafael Nadal knows exactly what he has to do to beat Federer.

And Nadal got on with doing what he has always done. He went for the backhand, especially on the serve. It was such an effective ploy, Nadal faced only 2 break points the whole match. Federer faced plenty though, and early in the first set, too, as Nadal ran him side to side, forcing him wider out the court and further back until the error came, or the short ball for the winner. Federer fought him off, doing what he said he had to do, being aggressive, but his first set stat of 24 errors to 15 winners, showed that his intentions were stronger than his execution.

Federer held his nemesis at bay until the tiebreak. That was as far as he would go as Nadal thrived under the pressure and broke Federer in. His wide angled forehand was the weapon, forcing errors from Federer on the run. Nadal got the early minibreak and then another one as Federer missed a volley. Victim to Nadal’s stratgey and his own inability to execute his plan of attack, Federer fell behind 1-4. He fought back to 4-6 but Nadal’s depth was too much and the final point of the set ended as so many of their battles have, on a deep spinning Nadal strike to the Federer backhand and the Swiss, helplessly almost, sending it long.

Leading 1-0 on serve in the second, Nadal took a medical time out for the blistered hand. The hand was treated and matters resumed exactly where they had left off, the blister nothing more than any old war wound. Nadal kept threatening Federer on the serve, holding several break points, Federer continued to attack and staved them off. Nadal though was having no problems on the serve, racing through his service games, and the Federer serve was confronted with the Nadal onslaught before it had had time to even catch its breath. Finally the pressure told on Federer. Leading 3-2, Nadal held break point, and pounced. He mixed it up: short balls, deep ones, down the line, cross court, until the court was opened up for a forehand winner. Leading 4-2, Nadal kept the pressure up, holding his service games and then serving out for a 6-3 second set scoreline.

In the third, Nadal did not let up doing his thing. He broke Federer at 1-1 and though Federer had the crowd going as he broke back, Nadal quickly silenced them, breaking again as if it had been nothing less than a slip up on his behalf and it was now time to get back to the business of beating Roger Federer in slams.

At 5-3 Nadal served for his third victory over Federer at the Australian Open, his first one in straight sets. At 40-15, he held two match points. Federer saved the first, attacking the net and forcing a backhand error from Nadal, going down the only way he could have won. And then, finally, it sunk him, the thing he had to do. On the second match point, Federer went for too much, his forehand going long, and Nadal won his 6th consecutive victory over Federer at a Major.

And he did it simply by doing what he does and not letting Federer do what he has to. That is how Nadal beats Federer. A very important thing we should not forget come their next meeting. And, if somewhat disrespectfully to Nadal, we do, the Spaniard will only be too ready to remind us.