Rafael "Rafa" Nadal Parera (Spanish pronunciation: [rafaˈel naˈðal paˈɾeɾa]; born 3 June 1986) is a Spanish professional tennis player currently ranked No. 1 in the world. Nadal has won eight Grand Slam singles titles, the 2008 Olympic gold medal in singles, a record 18 ATP World Tour Masters 1000 tournaments and also was part of the Spain Davis Cup team that won the finals in 2004, 2008 and 2009. He is regarded by many as one of the greatest tennis players of all time.
Nadal was ranked World No. 2, behind Roger Federer for a record 160 consecutive weeks before earning the top spot, which he then held from 18 August 2008 to 5 July 2009. He regained the World No.1 ranking on 7 June 2010 after winning his fifth French Open title. His success on clay has earned him the nickname "The King of Clay", and has prompted many experts to regard him as the greatest clay court player of all time. In 2008, Nadal was given the Prince of Asturias Award for Sports, in recognition of his achievements in tennis.

Roger Federer (born 8 August 1981) is a Swiss professional tennis player. As of 5 July 2010, he is ranked World No. 3 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP). He previously held the number one position for a record 237 consecutive weeks[3] and 285 total weeks, one week behind record holder Pete Sampras.Considered by many to be the greatest tennis player of all time, Federer has won a male record 16 Grand Slam singles titles. He is the most recent of six male players to capture the career Grand Slam, one of three (with Rod Laver and Andre Agassi) to do so during the Open Era and one of two (with Agassi) to do so on three different surfaces (clay, grass and hard courts). Federer has appeared in an unprecedented 22 career Grand Slam finals. He holds the record of reaching the semi-finals or better of 23 consecutive Grand Slam tournaments over five and a half years from 2004 Wimbledon Championships – 2010 Australian Open. Federer also holds the record of reaching 10 consecutive Grand Slam finals and appeared in 18 of 19 over four and a half years from 2005 Wimbledon Championships – 2010 Australian Open, excluding the 2008 Australian Open. Federer has won 4 ATP World Tour Finals and 16 ATP Masters Series tournaments. He also won the Olympic Gold Medal in doubles with his compatriot Stanislas Wawrinka at the 2008 Summer Olympic Games. As a result of Federer's successes in tennis, he was named the Laureus World Sportsman of the Year for four consecutive years (2005–2008). He is often referred to as The Federer Express or abbreviated to Fed Express, the Swiss Maestro or simply Maestro.

Federer and Nadal have been playing each other since 2004 and their rivalry is a significant part of both men's careers. They have held the top two rankings on the ATP Tour from July 2005 until 14 September 2009, when Nadal fell to World No. 3 (Andy Murray became the new No. 2). They are the only pair of men to have ever finished four consecutive calendar years at the top. Federer was ranked number 1 for a record 237 consecutive weeks beginning in February 2004. Nadal, who is five years younger, ascended to No. 2 in July 2005 and held this spot for a record 160 consecutive weeks before surpassing Federer in August 2008.
Nadal leads their head-to-head 14–7. Because tournament seedings are based on rankings, 17 of their matches have been in tournament finals, including an all-time record 7 Grand Slam finals. From 2006 to 2008 they played in every French Open and Wimbledon final, and then they met in the 2009 Australian Open final. Nadal won five of the seven, losing the first two Wimbledons. Three of these matches were five set-matches (2007 and 2008 Wimbledon, 2009 Australian Open), and the 2008 Wimbledon final has been lauded as the greatest match ever by many long-time tennis analysts.[ They have also played in a record 9 Masters Series finals, including their lone five hour match at the 2006 Rome Masters which Nadal won in a fifth-set tiebreak.Until 14 September 2009, when Juan Martín del Potro beat Nadal in the US Open semi-final on his way to defeating Federer in the final itself, no player had beaten Nadal and Federer in the same Grand Slam. Nadal has not lost a French Open (4) or Australian Open (1) final, while Federer was undefeated in US Open finals until losing to del Potro (5). Both have won Grand Slam events on three different surfaces successively (2008 French Open, 2008 Wimbledon, 2009 Australian Open for Nadal and 2008 US Open, 2009 French Open, 2009 Wimbledon for Federer).