Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal recalled the start of their intense tennis rivalry that became a significant part of both men's career.
Federer and Nadal opened about their memories when they first met in a tennis match. The Swiss Maestro said he was impressed by what he saw after facing Nadal for the first time back in 2004 at the ATP Masters Series Miami, now called Miami Open.
"I do not know remember at that time what rumours were about him [Nadal] but clearly that match was a turning point for him," Federer said, reports Tennis World USA.
"I think everyone thought he was a clay-court player. Well, He showed that probably he was much more than that. At the end he has had a fantastic career, the one that many expected he could have."
Nadal, on the other hand, made comparisons about his play when he first met Federer, which is also the Spaniard's first loss against the Swiss. The King of Clay was only at World No. 34 at that time, but was already touted to be one of the greatest in the sport at the age of 17.
"I was a little bit younger than him," Nadal said. "I didn't have a huge serve. I was not able to serve 140 miles (Smiling). I have probably better movements than what he has today, but I was not able to hit the ball that strong."
"But at the same time both the similarities are that both go on court with high decision to play the way we wanted to play."
Nadal leads Federer by 23-11 in their FedEx ATP Head2Head matchup and has won 7 of their last 10 meetings. However, the 34-year-old Federer holds the advantage in Grand Slam tallies, winning an all-time record 17 Grand Slam events.
Their most recent meeting was at the ATP Basel Swiss Indoors, where Federer defeated Nadal in the final round. But prior to that, Nadal has already won five consecutive matches against Federer.
The two rivals will have a chance to face each other once again at the Monte Carlo Rolex Masters on Apr. 10-17. Federer and Nadal both withdrew at the Miami Open, with the former having suffered from a stomach virus, while the latter from a dizzy spell.