JO: “All bets were off by that point. The momentum was with Federer because he’d won the fourth set. History was with Federer because he was the five-time champion, but there was still this unknown of what Nadal was going to offer in the decider. He had played so well to that point. Only a fool would have written him off. It was clear in the early games, even though Federer was serving first, that Nadal wasn’t going anywhere.”
At 19:53, with the decider poised at 2-2, deuce, the rain came again. The players went off and the covers came across. It looked like they would be coming back on Monday to finish it but it would prove a short interruption. Half an hour later, they resumed with, realistically, a maximum of an hour’s playable light left. The quality and intensity would never drop, the two men throwing all they had at each other. It was heart-stopping stuff.
JM: “I was fortunate enough that people talked about my match with Bjorn in 1980 as one of the great matches. But I was watching the 2008 final and sitting back and saying to myself: ‘This is the best match I’ve ever seen at Wimbledon.’
“Towards the end, I was virtually not saying anything in the commentary box. I thought what I was witnessing was so great and the players were rising to the occasion – anyone watching could tell it was going to be a match that people would talk about for generations to come. To me that’s an easy gig when you’re watching a match like that. When it is that good you sort of kick back and put your arms back.”
The match moved into its fifth hour. At 4-4, Federer earned a break point but Nadal saved it with a big forehand and follow-up smash. “Roger, Roger” and “Rafa, Rafa” were ringing out simultaneously. At 5-5, Nadal got to 15-40 on the Federer serve but the Swiss repelled him. The light was fading fast. With the clock having ticked past 21:00, Nadal won a thrilling point to hold for 7-7 – Federer somehow flicked a ferocious Nadal smash onto the baseline but the Spaniard put away a forehand and, with adrenaline coursing through his body, celebrated with a huge fist-pump. Would they have to stop there?
DD: I was sent out about 21:10 for the Charlie Pasarell-Pancho Gonzales match in 1969 (the second-longest singles match in Wimbledon history) and you could hardly see the white balls. The supervisor could not believe they were still playing. It was the same that day. I went down about 21:00 and thought ‘they have to call this soon’.
JO: “I always think television gives a…
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