This is one of the biggest rivalries in the history of tennis, but Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal will tread new ground this week when they meet in the round-robin clash for the first time in the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals in London.
Novak Djokovic climbing to number one in the world this year means that there is a 50-50 chance of Federer Nadal will be taken in the same group at the O2 Arena and so it happened.
Federer said: “for me it’s special to be in the same group as Rafa. I always enjoy playing against Rafa. We haven’t played much indoors so it is something very interesting. “
Federer entered the tournament as the tour’s in the form of players after back-to-back titles in his home city of Basel and Paris, while he was defending champion Nadal in the final which was hit 12 months ago.