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What ones would you swap or what orders would you swap. I tried to be unbiased and hopefully it is.
10. Andy Roddick choking against Federer at Wimbledon 2009.
It was his time, wasn't it? He was up a set and had a 6-2 lead in the second set tie break. Surely with his serve on grass, he was about to go Two sets up? Well, it wasn't the case. He lost 6 straight points to lose his set lead and also lost the next one too. Remarkably he actually went on to win the 4th set. Which lead us in to a 5th hour, Federer winning 16-14 in the final set. The biggest significance of this was that it was his 3rd final loss to Federer at Wimbledon and despite going deep so often, he never lifted the trophy. This was a way to ease the pain of this "rivalry" but instead made it hurt more.
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9. Aslan Karatsev 2021
The Russian shocked the tennis world with the most amazing run of form out of nowhere. He sat at a ranking of 253 last August. While he did make some great runs in Challengers last year, nobody saw this coming. He qualified for his first slam (Aussie Open) in great fashion. He then reached the Semi Final as a qualifier, beating several high profile players before backing it up with his first ATP title coming in Dubai right after. He is now top 30 and remains to be seen just how far he will go but it's a story for the ages.
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8. Nadal v Djokovic - Aus Open Final 2012
It was the longest slam final in history at 5 hours 53 minutes. It featured the top Two ranked players. The level of tennis from both men, for me was a point were you just thought, this is as good as it gets and I witnessed it. Every rally was grueling and so hard to take eyes off. It might not be the best match ever but adding the quality plus occasion makes it one of the most iconic. Djokovic won 7-5 in the 5th.
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7. Federer v Nadal - Aus Open Final 2017
This match was like a dream come through for many big tennis fans. They had been starved of a Fedal match for quite a while. In a Three year span they had only met once. While it was nice for them to meet again, it was more significant than just a match. Federer had been out for his longest period of time yet, only completing 28 matches up as far as Wimbledon the pervious year. For many, there was worry about his condition upon come back, age being a factor. Nadal also had a rough 2016, he had to pull out mid Roland Garros and missed Wimbledon too. For these guys to then reappear in a slam final and go to Five sets, was a historical moment in my opinion. Showing that these guys were not done yet, far from.
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6. 2014 US Open Final - Cilic v Nishikori
We were on course for a Federer v Djokovic final. The world was buzzing for it. Lost gen had other plans. In a remarkable Semi Final day, Cilic destroyed Federer and Nishikori beat Djokovic. We were left with a slam final between Seed 10 and 14. It was huge. There had not been a slam final without a big 4 member in absolute ages. We were gifted a new slam winner in a simply incredible era of tennis. Who would take this huge opportunity? It would be Cilic, but the match itself was a massive let down. There was not many slam final appearances between them after this either.
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5. Longest match ever - Isner v Mahut (Wimbledon 2010)
A simply historic match. Not sure if the fact it was on an outside court added to the beauty or made it less beautiful though. Fair play to anyone who watched every point of it. The match was 11 hours and 5 minutes long. I reckon Federer and Djokovic have won slams with less time spent on court, or at least close to it. Many records were broken, including both hitting over 100 aces each. The match was played over 3 different days, which I'm sure contributed to it being able to go on so long. Isner won 70-68 in the 5th set to pick up the routine win. Isner was trashed in straight sets in the next round for his troubles.
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4. Andy Murray wins Wimbledon - Ends 77 year drought for GB
After many Henman Semi Final's along with a few Murray Semi Final's and a final, the 77 year wait was finally over and Wimbledon had a home champion. A clinical straight sets win over Djokovic made it even sweeter. I believe being able to win Olympic gold on these ground 11 months or so before hand gave him the confidence to get over the line. Andy then went on to add another to his collection after that too. A fine win for Murray as he battled off the pressure, the media and one of the greatest players of all time.
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3. Soderling ends Nadal's RG dominance - French Open 2009
Nadal had won 31/31 matches in this slam and was looking unbeatable. Up stepped Soderling with one of the finest displays I have seen to beat him in 4 sets. There was word Nadal was not 100% but the Swede was flawless. He went all the way to the final and even beat Federer on route to the final a year later. It was one of those days you felt history was made and will always be remembered. Especially as a fit Rafa has not lost there since that day either.
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2. Murray wins back to back Olympic Gold Medals in Singles
The games only come around every 4 years, which makes it so prestigious, nevermind the sense of pride. To win One is amazing and something that Federer himself craves, but to win 2 is just unbelievable. Winning one of them on home soil in straight sets against the greatest ever grass player is phenomenal. There is no escaping the fact that The Rio edition was a lot easier but he still fought off an inspired Del Potro in the final. This is a feat that helps to keep him in many conversation despite not winning the amount of slams he probably should have. I don't think this will ever be repeated.
![363174]()
1. Greatest match ever - Nadal v Federer (Wimbledon Final 2008)
Two of the best ever, playing at their absolute peak levels and treated grass as if it was easy to rally on? Yes please. At this point, Federer was dominating grass and Nadal was dominating clay, to the point they were unbeatable on their respective surfaces. This was the first time one was breached on their surface. Nadal managed to win 9-7 in the 5th set. It also allowed for Nadal to replace Federer at Number 1 a few months later. To this day it is still the only time one beat the other in the others backyard. The quality of the match was even better than the circumstances. Its the match to show anyone looking to get in to the sport.
![363175]()
10. Andy Roddick choking against Federer at Wimbledon 2009.
It was his time, wasn't it? He was up a set and had a 6-2 lead in the second set tie break. Surely with his serve on grass, he was about to go Two sets up? Well, it wasn't the case. He lost 6 straight points to lose his set lead and also lost the next one too. Remarkably he actually went on to win the 4th set. Which lead us in to a 5th hour, Federer winning 16-14 in the final set. The biggest significance of this was that it was his 3rd final loss to Federer at Wimbledon and despite going deep so often, he never lifted the trophy. This was a way to ease the pain of this "rivalry" but instead made it hurt more.
9. Aslan Karatsev 2021
The Russian shocked the tennis world with the most amazing run of form out of nowhere. He sat at a ranking of 253 last August. While he did make some great runs in Challengers last year, nobody saw this coming. He qualified for his first slam (Aussie Open) in great fashion. He then reached the Semi Final as a qualifier, beating several high profile players before backing it up with his first ATP title coming in Dubai right after. He is now top 30 and remains to be seen just how far he will go but it's a story for the ages.
8. Nadal v Djokovic - Aus Open Final 2012
It was the longest slam final in history at 5 hours 53 minutes. It featured the top Two ranked players. The level of tennis from both men, for me was a point were you just thought, this is as good as it gets and I witnessed it. Every rally was grueling and so hard to take eyes off. It might not be the best match ever but adding the quality plus occasion makes it one of the most iconic. Djokovic won 7-5 in the 5th.
7. Federer v Nadal - Aus Open Final 2017
This match was like a dream come through for many big tennis fans. They had been starved of a Fedal match for quite a while. In a Three year span they had only met once. While it was nice for them to meet again, it was more significant than just a match. Federer had been out for his longest period of time yet, only completing 28 matches up as far as Wimbledon the pervious year. For many, there was worry about his condition upon come back, age being a factor. Nadal also had a rough 2016, he had to pull out mid Roland Garros and missed Wimbledon too. For these guys to then reappear in a slam final and go to Five sets, was a historical moment in my opinion. Showing that these guys were not done yet, far from.
6. 2014 US Open Final - Cilic v Nishikori
We were on course for a Federer v Djokovic final. The world was buzzing for it. Lost gen had other plans. In a remarkable Semi Final day, Cilic destroyed Federer and Nishikori beat Djokovic. We were left with a slam final between Seed 10 and 14. It was huge. There had not been a slam final without a big 4 member in absolute ages. We were gifted a new slam winner in a simply incredible era of tennis. Who would take this huge opportunity? It would be Cilic, but the match itself was a massive let down. There was not many slam final appearances between them after this either.
5. Longest match ever - Isner v Mahut (Wimbledon 2010)
A simply historic match. Not sure if the fact it was on an outside court added to the beauty or made it less beautiful though. Fair play to anyone who watched every point of it. The match was 11 hours and 5 minutes long. I reckon Federer and Djokovic have won slams with less time spent on court, or at least close to it. Many records were broken, including both hitting over 100 aces each. The match was played over 3 different days, which I'm sure contributed to it being able to go on so long. Isner won 70-68 in the 5th set to pick up the routine win. Isner was trashed in straight sets in the next round for his troubles.
4. Andy Murray wins Wimbledon - Ends 77 year drought for GB
After many Henman Semi Final's along with a few Murray Semi Final's and a final, the 77 year wait was finally over and Wimbledon had a home champion. A clinical straight sets win over Djokovic made it even sweeter. I believe being able to win Olympic gold on these ground 11 months or so before hand gave him the confidence to get over the line. Andy then went on to add another to his collection after that too. A fine win for Murray as he battled off the pressure, the media and one of the greatest players of all time.
3. Soderling ends Nadal's RG dominance - French Open 2009
Nadal had won 31/31 matches in this slam and was looking unbeatable. Up stepped Soderling with one of the finest displays I have seen to beat him in 4 sets. There was word Nadal was not 100% but the Swede was flawless. He went all the way to the final and even beat Federer on route to the final a year later. It was one of those days you felt history was made and will always be remembered. Especially as a fit Rafa has not lost there since that day either.
2. Murray wins back to back Olympic Gold Medals in Singles
The games only come around every 4 years, which makes it so prestigious, nevermind the sense of pride. To win One is amazing and something that Federer himself craves, but to win 2 is just unbelievable. Winning one of them on home soil in straight sets against the greatest ever grass player is phenomenal. There is no escaping the fact that The Rio edition was a lot easier but he still fought off an inspired Del Potro in the final. This is a feat that helps to keep him in many conversation despite not winning the amount of slams he probably should have. I don't think this will ever be repeated.
1. Greatest match ever - Nadal v Federer (Wimbledon Final 2008)
Two of the best ever, playing at their absolute peak levels and treated grass as if it was easy to rally on? Yes please. At this point, Federer was dominating grass and Nadal was dominating clay, to the point they were unbeatable on their respective surfaces. This was the first time one was breached on their surface. Nadal managed to win 9-7 in the 5th set. It also allowed for Nadal to replace Federer at Number 1 a few months later. To this day it is still the only time one beat the other in the others backyard. The quality of the match was even better than the circumstances. Its the match to show anyone looking to get in to the sport.
