The final dreamed of by all tennis lovers will finally take place this Sunday at the Masters 1000 in Miami when the Swiss Roger Federer and the Spanish Rafael Nadal, two of the most charismatic players on the circuit, face off.
They already met this year in January at the Australian Open, the first Grand Slam of the season, with Federer’s victory, but in Miami since 2005 the two players have not seen each other in a final, which the Swiss also won.
But this Sunday’s final is a reserved forecast as both players are in excellent condition. The historical balance between the two favors Nadala widely by 23-13 in games in general and 14-8 in finals.
Both players sealed their tickets for this final on Friday.
Federer, fourth seed, prevailed in a long semifinal match with three tiebreaks against the talented young Australian Nick Kyrgios, 7-6 (11/9), 6-7 (9/11), 7-6 (7/5) in three hours and 11 minutes.
The Swiss took much advantage of his experience by taking the first set in the long tiebreak that was finally decided after five setpoints for him on 11/9.
The other two partials were a carbon copy with an excellent performance from the Swiss.
The match was very even and although Kyrgios managed 14 aces – one of the best serves on the circuit with an average of 134 miles per hour – Federer’s 11 were at the key moments.
Federer took advantage of the effectiveness of his first serve by 90%, as well as the 36 unforced errors of his opponent.
The Swiss has had to sweat his shirt in this event, considered by many as the ‘Fifth Grand Slam’, when playing in his five games to reach the final seven tiebreaks, but he finally continues with his excellent step this year, in which he has won the Australian Open and the Indian Wells Masters 1000.
– Nadal to win his first title in Miami –
For his part, Nadal, the fifth seed, got his fifth ticket to the final of the Masters 1000 in Miami by beating Italian Fabio Fognini 6-1, 7-5.
After winning the first set easily, the Iberian got complicated in the second, but finally broke his rival’s serve in the eleventh game and then successfully protected his serve to leave Fognini blank.
Nadal hit six aces, and made his first serve 83% to 72% of his rival.
In addition, ‘Rafa’ also broke the Italian three times.
“I think I had a good serve today, it is also true that I did not have a very good second set as I made some mistakes, also there was a lot of wind, but in summary I think it was a good match for me,” Nadal declared after the game.
Will this be Nadal’s opportunity to lift the trophy that has eluded him in 13 appearances with four finals in the tournament held at Crandon Park in Key Biscayne?
This Sunday the answer will be known. AFP