The Tennistalk panel has voted and the writers have spoken. After an almost unanimous vote, the Australian Open semifinal between Nadal and Verdasco has been named the 2009 ATP Tour Match of the Year.
It was the longest match in the history of the Australian Open.
Longer than the Muller-Lopez first-round thriller that had initially been recorded at five hours and 35 minutes. Longer than Roddick-El Aynaoui in 2003. (For history buffs) Longer than Sampras-Mayotte in 1990 and Noah-Smith in 1988. Longer—just barely—than Becker-Camporese in 1991.
After five hours and 14 minutes of inspirational tennis, Rafael Nadal outlasted fellow Spaniard Fernando Verdasco 6-7(4), 6-4, 7-6 (2), 6-7(1), 6-4 in an epic semifinal on Friday night, January 30.
It was not simply the longest match in tournament history. It was also, without question, one of the best.
Refusing to wilt under the Australian summer heat or amidst the pressure of a Grand Slam semifinal, both competitors—remarkably—sustained a jaw-dropping level of tennis throughout all 314 minutes of their spirited, incredibly well-played clash.
Verdasco, having never previously sniffed the final weekend of a Grand Slam, blasted 95 winners past Nadal. Has anyone ever—and I mean EVER—struck 95 shots within the lines yet beyond the reach of a player of Nadal’s defensive caliber?
Nadal, meanwhile, fired more than twice as many winners (52) as unforced errors. The tournament’s No. 1 seed committed a mere 25 mistakes over the course of the entire match. For those counting, that means Nadal made one unforced error—just one—every 12 minutes and 34 seconds. Are you serious?
Keep in mind, furthermore, that a significant percentage of the points consisted of marathon, hard-to-believe rallies. Only 33 points resulted in aces. Still, in brilliant fashion, Nadal and Verdasco combined for 46 more winners than errors.
They played 59 games and 385 points. Prior to the 385th and final point of the instant classic, it was all even: Nadal 192, Verdasco 192.
A heavy underdog against an opponent whom he had never defeated in six career attempts, Verdasco went toe to toe with Nadal until the very last second. Serving to stay alive at 4-5 in the fifth set, Verdasco saved two match points at 0-40 and 30-40, both with swinging volley winners.
"In the last game, at 0-40, I started to cry," Nadal explained afterward. "It was too much tension."
And he was right. It was too much.
At long last, on match point number three, Verdasco finally cracked. A double-fault brought an end to the gut-wrenching drama. When it ended, of course, the two players collapsed to the ground simultaneously; one in the joy of victory, one in the agony of defeat, both in physical and mental exhaustion.
"I lost after five hours, but I need to be proud for the level I played today," said a valiant Verdasco. "It was an unbelievable match. We both played unbelievable. I’m so proud. For sure I will have this match in my mind all my life."
"Today was one of those matches you're going to remember a long time," Nadal concluded.
Amen to that.
http://www.tennistalk.com/en/news/20091217/2009_Match_of_the_Year:_Rafael_Nadal_vs._Fernando_Verdasco
