It’s been an historic summer, a tearful summer, a lordly summer. We’ll likely never witness a month of all-time achievements like the one we just saw from Roger Federer. But it’s also been one-sided summer, because the person who has defined this era with Federer, Rafael Nadal, has been missing. Like the months when Monica Seles was away from the tour in 1993 and 1994, it seemed like half of the sport—the grunting half—had vanished. Like Steffi Graf's then, Federer wins almost felt like an embarrassment of riches.
As you know, the other half will return next week in Montreal, as Nadal will test out his achy knees for the first time in competition since his loss to Robin Soderling in Paris two months ago. Rafa is in Canada now, practicing without wraps on his knees, though we know that doesn’t mean much—the pain might just have moved somewhere. New-father Federer will be there as well, so we should have the sport back in full.
To celebrate the occasion, we’ve brought back the end-of-week UTennis column. The first clip, above, is of Nadal playing the final of a junior tournament in Barcelona at age 12; below it’s 11 years later, and he’s in the semifinals of the Australian Open. It's just a little reminder of what the guy brings to the game. But first, young Rafa:
—The first thing you notice is how skinny and long-limbed Nadal was. He also, at least at this point in the match, doesn't have the fighter’s chest-out bearing that we’ve come to know so well. He’s a little flat-footed and slump-shouldered, like most kids.
—The second thing you notice is that this is a hard court. He obviously spent some time on them as a kid.
—The first ground stroke we see is a backhand that he sends straight toward the moon: classic junior stuff. But then we see something special. Nadal backs all the way to the opposite sideline to get a forehand, and he hits it with surprising explosiveness—even his opponent looks stunned for a second—before knocking off a textbook high volley into the corner. The pace Nadal got on the ball seems out of all proportion to his size.
—How about that hat on Uncle Toni? He's less Buddha-like and more agitated then he does now in the stands.
—Does Nadal lose this match? It looks like his opponent wins it with a swinging volley and then points to someone in the stands to celebrate.
—The slo-mos of Nadal show him with a bigger wind-up on both strokes, and he uses a two-handed backhand slice when he’s pulled wide. He probably hadn’t developed the one-hander yet. His racquet, the blue Babolat that I assume he began using because Carlos Moya did, looks two sizes too big for him.
—The shrugs, the sighs, the eyebrow twitches: Those mannerisms are all still there when Nadal is interviewed today. His face is as expressive as his manner is guarded. I’m not sure what he’s saying, but Rafa seems to have been a stoic from the beginning.
Remember this match? It’s funny how quickly the Aussie Open can be forgotten—it’s like an island unto itself on the calendar, not quite belonging to either season. But Nadal-Verdasco was the first of the three best matches of 2009 thus far, along with the Nadal-Djokovic semi in Madrid and the Wimbledon final. Based on these 9 minutes of exhausting highlights, I’d say it remains the best. Certainly it offered the most great tennis.
We likely won’t see this Nadal in Montreal. He’s starting gingerly, he’s lost his French and Wimbledon titles, and he’s no longer No. 1. He even says he doesn’t care if he gets back there. He obviously doesn’t feel entitled to the spot, which is appealing, but the long-term No. 1s, the Federers and Samprases, always do feel entitled to it. Nadal's down-to-earth honesty and stoicism helps him compete on a daily basis, but it’s not a mindset that lends itself to ruling the sport. Still, all that's for the future; here's some of the best of Rafa's recent past:
—The first thing I notice isn’t Nadal, but his opponent, who had never played this well before and hasn’t since. On this day, he's exactly as good as the then-world No. 1. After five hours, they would end up winning nearly the same number of points.
—The slow, rubbery hard courts in Melbourne, whether Rebound Ace in the past or Plexicushion today, have always lent themselves to the long and inspired classic. You can see that both of these guys have the time, and the assurance of a perfect bounce, to show off their best games. Penetrating shots are rewarded, but they can also be tracked down and turned into even better shots.
—The pace of the rallies seems to pick up as the sets go on. Their confidence grew at the same rate as their desperation to get the ball past the other guy.
—One of many peaks, playing-wise, comes at the 4:00 minute mark, when Nadal tracks down a sidespinning slice and hits an even better sidespinning hook over the doubles alley and into the corner for a winner. The announcers yell, “OHHH’ in unison and Nadal backs up and fist-pumps Connors-style. Verdasco can only shake his head.
—The emotional peak comes at 0-40 in the final game, triple match point, when Nadal’s eyes begin to shine with tears. I wrote at the time, “It was the face of a great tennis player on the ledge again. Leave it to Rafael Nadal to show us how far the sport can push a man.”
Whatever his form in Canada, it will be good to have him back.
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Have a good weekend. I'll be back Monday to talk about L.A. and D.C. and do a—slightly belated—Montreal preview. Nadal is back, Federer is here, the women are in California: Let the new season begin.