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The 51st edition of the ATP World Tour Finals is about to begin at the O2 Arena in London. It will be the twelfth and last time that London will host the end-of-season championships. For the next five years, the Pala Alpitour stadium in Turin, Italy, will play the prestigious tournament. Recently, former world number one Roger Federer spoke about the electrifying atmosphere at the O2.
Having won the tournament a record six times, Federer won two of those titles in London. The Swiss master won his first trophy at the O2 Arena in 2010, when he defeated his archrival, Rafael Nadal, in a thrilling final. Referring to the epic match, Federer revealed that he was able to dictate the game by setting the points with his serve.
“The first victory I had in London was in 2010 against Rafa in the final. He has always been a difficult player for me. But I think in that game I really felt like I knew how I wanted to build the points, establishing my points very well with serve and then being able to dominate with the forehand. Federer said in an interview.
I was very happy: Roger Federer
In 2010, Nadal won three consecutive Grand Slam titles and became the second male player to achieve a Career Golden Slam. The same year, Nadal entered the ATP Nitto Finals for the first time after winning a marathon semi-final against Andy Murray.
Despite the Spaniard winning the second set to stay in the match, Federer fought his way in the deciding set to claim his fifth Nitto Finals title.
“I’m serving, match point 5-1 40-15. I don’t know if the ball was inside or outside but Rafa gave it to me, there are no dramas there. I was very happy. After a long and tough season, I think it was good for both of us to be in the final. Federer said about the winning moment.
However, Federer will not participate in the season finale championships this year as he retired for the entire season to recover from a right knee injury. On the other hand, Nadal is still aiming to win his first ATP World Tour Finals title, a trophy missing from his exquisite cabinet.
