Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal will be chasing more than gold at the Olympics with the coveted world number one place suddenly at stake.
The Federer-Nadal rivalry will be one of the most fascinating at the Games with commercial backers and the game’s rulers licking their lips in anticipation
PARIS: Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal will be chasing more than gold at the Beijing Olympics with the coveted world number one place suddenly at stake following the Spaniard’s stunning Wimbledon triumph.
Federer has occupied the top spot in the rankings for 232 weeks while Nadal has had to be content with life in the Swiss star’s slipstream for 155 of those. But the tournament in China could witness the latest dramatic switch in tennis’s balance of power which seemed impossible just a few weeks ago.
Ahead of the French Open, where Nadal cruised effortlessly to a fourth successive title, the Mallorcan was too busy looking over his shoulder at the imminent danger posed by Novak Djokovic who was poised to take over his number two slot. But after becoming the first man since Bjorn Borg in 1980 to complete the elusive Roland Garros-Wimbledon double, Nadal is now poised to knock Federer off his perch if a complicated series of scenarios work in his favour.
The defining moment could come on the north American hardcourts, in Beijing or at the US Open where Federer is the defending champion.
Either way, the 22-year-old Nadal is eager for the Olympics to get underway. “To play in the Olympics is very special, because when you’re very young you always see the Olympic Games on television,” said Nadal, who’ll be making his singles debut in Beijing having played doubles with Carlos Moya at Athens four years ago. “You represent your country, that’s the same as the Davis Cup, but at the same time it’s completely different. When I play Davis Cup I always have this big motivation and I think in the Olympics I am going to have the same.”
Despite Nadal’s triumphs at Wimbledon and at Roland Garros, Federer doesn’t take kindly to suggestions that he should be preparing to hand over his number one spot to his Spanish rival. “You write what you want,” he snapped after losing the five-set thriller at the All England Club, his 12th defeat in 18 matches with Nadal. “I’m going to try and win the Olympics and the US Open and then we can talk again.”
The Federer-Nadal rivalry will be one of the most fascinating at the Games with commercial backers and the game’s rulers licking their lips in anticipation. If TV viewing figures are any guide, a gold medal clash between the sport’s heavyweights will be big box office.
In the United Kingdom, more than 13 million viewers watched the culmination of the Wimbledon final, a huge 47.6 percent of the TV audience. Federer finished fourth at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney and was knocked out in round two at Athens by Thomas Berdych of the Czech Republic.
Despite his enthusiasm for the Games, the 12-time Grand Slam champion acknowledged, however, that Wimbledon, Roland Garros and the Australian and US Opens remain the benchmark of success. “You’re going to be judged on the Grand Slams you win and number ones,” Federer says. “The Olympics are a new thing to tennis. Maybe in 50 years’ time it will also become one of the big tournaments to win. For me it is already, but maybe some players and some fans need more convincing that the Olympics is big for tennis.”
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