2017 Australian Open final
- Fifth set, 1–3
Nadal broke in the first game and led 3–1. Federer missed break points in Nadal's next two service games, then won five games in a row.
ATP; Tennis.com; Match Charting Project log - Fifth set, 3–4 and 3–5
Federer broke for 3–3, held to love, and broke again for 5–3 after needing five break points.
ATP; Match Charting Project log - Championship point
Serving at 5–3, Federer trailed 15–40, then won it on his second championship point with a forehand winner that Nadal challenged. Hawk-Eye called it in.
Australian Open match report
The stat sheet
How long the points were
Share of points by rally length, this final against the other classic finals.
The match in numbers
Nadal hit 122 cross-court forehands at Federer's backhand, and fewer than half came in points he won. In their 2014 Australian Open semi-final, nearly three-quarters did.
Jeff Sackmann, Tennis AbstractFederer's backhand rated +7.8 points per 100 shots, his best in any major against Nadal. Over 219 backhands that's worth about 11 points, the margin of the match.
Jeff Sackmann, Tennis AbstractIn the charting, Federer won 36 of 47 net points and 11 of his 14 serve-and-volley points.
Match Charting Project
Point by point: the Match Charting Project log
Against heavy topspin to your weaker side, move in and take it early. Federer took Nadal's forehands on the rise and played aggressively in the fast conditions.
Jeff Sackmann, Tennis Abstract; Tennis.com
Questions
How did Federer beat Nadal in the 2017 Australian Open final?
His backhand held up against Nadal's cross-court forehand, and he won five straight games from 1–3 down in the fifth set.
How old was Federer when he won the 2017 Australian Open?
35, the oldest Grand Slam champion since Ken Rosewall.
What we don't claim
- The duration is 3 h 38 min in Reuters and Wikipedia, 3 h 37 min in ATP's report.