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Roger Federer and Juan Carlos Ferrero met in the semifinal of the 2003 Madrid Masters, battling for a place in the title clash and no. 1. The local player defeated Federer 6-4, 4-6, 6-4 in one hour and 52 minutes for his fifth Masters 1000 final and first off clay.
Juan Carlos took one more point than Roger, losing serve once and producing two breaks to cross the finish line first. The Swiss had more winners and more forced errors, building a slight lead in the shorter rallies and losing it in the longer exchanges to keep Ferrero in contention.
The Spaniard took a break in the fifth game of the first game and gave up two points on serve to control the score and capture it 6-4. Federer took over in set number two, serving well and earning a break at 15 in the 10th game to establish a decider where he had the upper hand.
Still, Ferrero played at a higher level, achieving a break in game five after a comeback winner and a pair of double faults by Roger before taking the match home with his serve in game ten. "I was not happy with my game today.
I had some good moments, but it was full of ups and downs for others. My return was horrible in the first set. Maybe it has improved his serve, I don't know, but it has worked well for him. He was struggling with the rhythm and reading the opponent's serve.
Things got better for me in sets two and three, but not enough to get across the finish line first. I played constant tennis for a whole season. It took me a couple of years to reach that level and stay on a high note for three or four weeks in a row.
I never had the rhythm here in Madrid; I've been saying it since the first game."
Federer narrated an interesting anecdote
Recently, in an interview with Schweizer Illustrierte, the Swiss Maestro narrated an interesting anecdote that happened after the legendary 2019 Wimbledon Championships Final against Novak Djokovic.
“The kids were so excited and wanted to sleep in it the night before they left. I just thought, ‘Oh, no. Please do not! I just want to go to my bed! ‘”No question who got the upper hand. Even after the historic 5-hour crime thriller, the children had no mercy on Dad.
“Of course there were six of us spent the night in the camper”. said Roger Federer. In hindsight, he confessed to being glad about having gone on that camping holiday. Over the years, his children have often been spotted in the stands along with their mother Mirka, who has been Roger’s biggest support since the start of his career.
