Cabeza del Demonio
Professional
3 unforgettable Australian Open matches between the dominant World #1 at the peak of his career and a talented shotmaker playing the match of his life.
Federer vs Safin 2005 - Only one man could match the great Roger Federer for talent, and that was the mercurial Russian, Marat Safin. A few months on from playing one of history's greatest tiebreaks, Federer and Safin produced a match of stratospheric quality, an exhibition of powerful, aggressive tennis. Both players found them staring down the barrel numerous times near the end, raising their level with fearless shotmaking to heighten the drama and keep the capacity crowd on the edge of their seats, until Safin sent Federer to the ground one last time to hand him his only Slam loss off clay between 2003 and 2008.
Nadal vs Verdasco 2009 - The result of an unstoppable force meeting an immovable object. Nadal was in the form of his life, having finally taken Wimbledon from Federer in a drama-filled marathon final and standing atop the rankings for the first time in his career. But he faced his sternest test yet against his countryman who had already defeated Andy Murray and didn't look to stop there. Verdasco burst out of the blocks with a brilliant display of baseline aggression to take the first set. But Nadal raised his level, defending like a rock wall and denying Verdasco any cheap points. The ultimate battle of attack vs defense seemed interminable, lasting 5 hr 14 min - the longest match in AO history - but Nadal hung on just long enough for Verdasco to crumble in the end.
Djokovic vs Wawrinka 2013 - "We expected the routine. We got the extraordinary." The commentator's words perfectly summed up one of the greatest and most unexpected matches of all time. The Serb superstar was chasing a 3rd consecutive AO title and a spot in the history books, but Wawrinka made sure he would have to earn it the hard way. The Stanimal came out guns blazing, producing his best tennis yet to put Djokovic on the back foot. But the champion dug deep, defending against Wawrinka's haymakers like his life depended on it, to level the match. The quality did not let up one bit, both players playing at their very highest level and giving the crowd a treat. As the match entered its 6th hour, not a single spectator had left - they were seeing something like a movie play out before them in real time. The match hit its climax in the last game, with both players producing scintillating winners out of nowhere, bringing the crowd to their feet every point. The match seemed all but lost for the young champion, but Djokovic showed the world one more time why he was the world's best player, scrambling for one last epic backhand pass to come out victorious.
Federer vs Safin 2005 - Only one man could match the great Roger Federer for talent, and that was the mercurial Russian, Marat Safin. A few months on from playing one of history's greatest tiebreaks, Federer and Safin produced a match of stratospheric quality, an exhibition of powerful, aggressive tennis. Both players found them staring down the barrel numerous times near the end, raising their level with fearless shotmaking to heighten the drama and keep the capacity crowd on the edge of their seats, until Safin sent Federer to the ground one last time to hand him his only Slam loss off clay between 2003 and 2008.
Nadal vs Verdasco 2009 - The result of an unstoppable force meeting an immovable object. Nadal was in the form of his life, having finally taken Wimbledon from Federer in a drama-filled marathon final and standing atop the rankings for the first time in his career. But he faced his sternest test yet against his countryman who had already defeated Andy Murray and didn't look to stop there. Verdasco burst out of the blocks with a brilliant display of baseline aggression to take the first set. But Nadal raised his level, defending like a rock wall and denying Verdasco any cheap points. The ultimate battle of attack vs defense seemed interminable, lasting 5 hr 14 min - the longest match in AO history - but Nadal hung on just long enough for Verdasco to crumble in the end.
Djokovic vs Wawrinka 2013 - "We expected the routine. We got the extraordinary." The commentator's words perfectly summed up one of the greatest and most unexpected matches of all time. The Serb superstar was chasing a 3rd consecutive AO title and a spot in the history books, but Wawrinka made sure he would have to earn it the hard way. The Stanimal came out guns blazing, producing his best tennis yet to put Djokovic on the back foot. But the champion dug deep, defending against Wawrinka's haymakers like his life depended on it, to level the match. The quality did not let up one bit, both players playing at their very highest level and giving the crowd a treat. As the match entered its 6th hour, not a single spectator had left - they were seeing something like a movie play out before them in real time. The match hit its climax in the last game, with both players producing scintillating winners out of nowhere, bringing the crowd to their feet every point. The match seemed all but lost for the young champion, but Djokovic showed the world one more time why he was the world's best player, scrambling for one last epic backhand pass to come out victorious.
Last edited:
Aggressive as hell
That "pigeon" had the championship on his racquet in the next match.
