Federer & Nadal's first Lexus ATP Head2Head meeting 20 years on

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Twenty years ago today when Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal walked on court for their first Lexus ATP Head2Head clash in Miami, the players nor the fans watching could have known the history the two stars would make over the next two decades.

On 28 March 2004, Nadal upset World No. 1 Federer 6-3, 6-3 to reach the fourth round at the Miami ATP Masters 1000 event.

“I'm very happy because I played one of the best matches in my life,” Nadal said. “Obviously, he didn't play his best tennis and that's the reason why I could win. I mean, if he had played his best tennis, I would have had no chance. But that's what happens in tennis. If a player like me plays at a very, very good level and a top player like Roger doesn't play his best tennis, I can win.”

In his post-match press conference, Nadal explained that he played “almost perfect tennis” by stepping inside the court and pressing the Swiss so the top seed could not play his own attacking game.

“But one thing I forgot, I served extremely well today,” Nadal said. “Probably I never served like this in my life. That was really the key.”

The Spaniard did not face a break point in the match, according to Infosys ATP Stats.

“He doesn't hit the ball flat and hard. It's more with a lot of spin, which makes the ball bounce, bounce high, and that's a struggle I had today,” Federer said. “I tried to get out of it, but kind of couldn't. I thought in the beginning I maybe wasn't going for my shots enough, where in the end I thought I was hitting the ball better. But I felt the match maybe went his way, and he hit some really incredible shots.” 

Nadal said: “I was afraid that he could win 6-1, 6-1 or 6-1, 6-2 but I was really looking forward to playing this match because I was playing against the No. 1 player in the world. I went on court with a positive attitude, not with the attitude of, ‘Oh, let's try and win one game’.”

This proved to be just the first of 40 showdowns between the all-time greats — Nadal ultimately won 24 of those matches — but it all started in Miami.

“I’ve heard a lot about him and saw some matches of his,” Federer said. “I think this is not a big surprise for everybody.”