World No. 1 Roger Federer and No. 2 Rafael Nadal square off for the second consecutive year on Sunday in the best-of-three sets final of Masters Series Monte-Carlo. Last year Nadal prevailed in four sets and went on to defeat Federer in finals in Rome and Roland Garros. The winner receives 500 ATP Ranking points and €340,000 while the finalist earns 350 points and €170,000. Nadal has a 6-3 career advantage against Federer, including 4-0 on clay, but the Swiss No. 1 won the last two meetings in 2006.
Both players have yet to drop a set en route to the final and the most games Nadal has lost in a match is five. Nadal takes an Open Era record 66-match clay court winning streak into the final since his last loss to Igor Andreev in the quarterfinals of Valencia on Apr. 8, 2005. The 20-year-old Spaniard is also undefeated (13-0) in his career in clay finals. He is trying to become the first player to win three straight Monte-Carlo titles since Ilie Nastase from 1971-73.
Nadal ended Federer’s record 56-match winning streak on hard courts in the final of Dubai on Mar. 4, 2006.
Federer is attempting to capture his ATP-best third title of the season (Australian Open, Dubai) and first on clay since ATP Masters Series Hamburg in May 2005. He is 12-4 lifetime in Masters Series finals and looking to win his seventh different AMS shield.
Nadal has an outstanding 18-3 career record in finals with two of the losses coming to Federer (’05 Miami, ’06 Wimbledon). He captured his seventh career (7-1) ATP Masters Series title in Indian Wells last month (d. Djokovic). He has won five different AMS shields in his career.
STREAKS ON THE LINE – Nadal has several impressive streaks on the line going into Sunday:
Streak/ Last Loss
- 66 consecutive clay court match wins - Apr. 8, 2005 to Andreev (’05 Valencia QF)
- 16 consecutive match wins in Monte-Carlo - Apr. 17, 2003 to Coria (3rd RD)
- 13 consecutive clay court finals - Has never lost in his career (13-0)
- 7 consecutive ATP Masters Series finals - Apr. 3, 2005 to Federer (Miami)
THE KING OF CLAY – Nadal is unbeaten in his last 66 clay court matches, an Open Era record. The 20-year-old Spaniard’s last loss came to Igor Andreev in the quarterfinals of Valencia on Apr. 8, 2005. During the streak, Nadal has won 10 titles.
No. of matches/ Streak Duration
Rafael Nadal 66 Apr. 2005-current
Guillermo Vilas 53 May-Sept. 1977
Bjorn Borg 46 Oct. 1977-May 1979
Thomas Muster 40 Feb.-June 1995
Muster 38 Aug. 1995-Apr. 1996
Ilie Nastase 38 May-Oct. 1973
STREAK SUMMARY – During Nadal’s 66-match winning streak, which began in Monte-Carlo in April 2005, he has defeated 47 different opponents from 21 different countries. The players he has beaten the most during the streak: Federer (4), Coria (3), Gaudio (3), Berdych (2), Ferrer (2), Ferrero (2), Gasquet (2), Malisse (2), Monfils (2), Nieminen (2) Robredo (2), Seppi (2), Stepanek (2), Vliegen (2), and Volandri (2). He has defeated 60 right-handed opponents and six left-handed opponents. He also has a 9-4 record in tie-breaks during the streak.Here's a look at the streak by matches:
Best of Three Set Matches (41)
Straight-set wins: 34
Three-set wins: 7
Best of Five Set Matches (25)
Straight-set wins: 13
Four-set wins: 10
Five-set wins: 2
Note: He has lost the first set 11 times during the streak
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