2011 Australian Open: Federer the only threat to Nadal’s calendar slam
First Grand Slam of 2011, the Australian Open starts on Monday in the city of Melbourne.
The Swiss tennis maestro Roger Federer is currently viewed as the only major threat to world number one Rafael Nadal’s calendar slam. The 24-year-old Nadal is in quest to register his name as the first player in 42 years to win all four major titles in a
row by picking up the crown at Melbourne.
World number two Roger Federer, on the other hand, is not only the defending champion but also the hottest player as far as his form is concerned. The 29-year-old got the better of Nadal in the final of the Barclays ATP World Tour finals to win the year
ending title in November 2010. He is currently enjoying a ten-match winning streak which also saw him pick up a trophy at the Qatar Open in the first week of January 2011.
Moreover, the Swiss is also the only active contender who has won the Australian Open crown on more than a single occasion in his career. He has so far emerged victorious in Melbourne on four occasions on the tour.
The Basel-born grabbed his first Australian Open crown and second Grand Slam title back in 2004 after thrashing out Marat Safin in three sets in the final. It was his fourth appearance in Melbourne as he could not go past the fourth round in three previous
attempts in 2000, 2001 and 2002.
The right-hander faced Marat Safin next year again in the semi-final round where he was eventually bundled out of the event in a five-set marathon. With that victory, Safin made his second straight appearance in the final where he ultimately won his second
major title.
The Fed Express afterwards grabbed back-to-back crowns in 2006 and 2007 after hammering down Marcos Baghdatis and Fernando Gonzalez respectively in the title battles. On his way to victory in 2007, the Basel native also set another record by winning the
trophy without even dropping a single set.
Federer was a clear cut favourite to win the Melbourne title in 2008 as well. However, Novak Djokovic of Serbia stunned everyone by dismissing the 16-time Grand Slam champion in the semi-final round. Djokovic eventually went on to win the title.
World number two met his archrival Rafael Nadal in the final of the Australian Open in 2009. This was the pair’s first encounter on a hard court Grand Slam title battle.
Rafa did well to win points at important stages and thus managed to snatch the crown from the Swiss in a convincing manner in the end. By virtue of this victory, the Spaniard also proved that he can play equally well on all sorts of surfaces.
The Swiss is once again entering 2011 Australian Open as the last year’s winner when he thrashed Andy Murray of Britain in the title battle in straight sets.
There is no doubt about the fact that Federer is enjoying an excellent run of form at the moment and his confidence level is also sky rocketing. However, does that actually mean that he is going to successfully defend his title in Melbourne and prove a major
obstacle on Rafa’s way to his calendar grand slam?
Nobody can say that with surety, however, one thing is clear that his fitness, confidence and form combined with his rich Grand Slam winning history definitely places him on top of world number Rafael Nadal for the year’s first grand slam.
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