INTERVIEW: Laver hedges his bets on Federer in semi against Nadal

By Sebastian Fest Jan 25, 2012, 12:19 GMT

Melbourne - Roger Federer will beat Rafael Nadal on Thursday, according to Australian tennis legend Rod Laver, whom many regard as the best tennis player of all times.

'It is a gut feeling that I think Roger will be in the final,' Laver said in an interview with German Press Agency dpa, analyzing the upcoming 27th meeting of the two in the Australian Open semi-finals.

Laver, 73, won the Grand Slam - Australian, US Open, French Open, Wimbledon - in 1962 and 1969, an achievement which has not been repeated since then in a calendar year.

The Australian, who is left-handed like Nadal, is a big fan of the Spaniard. He followed Nadal's last match from the front benches of the stadium carrying his name, Rod Laver Arena. The game of the world's current number two left him speechless.

'It is unbelievable how fast he can run and make unbelievable shots on the run,' Laver commented.

The Australian has won 11 Grand Slam tournaments overall, a record which could have been even better if he had not been banned from the circuit until 1968 for having become a professional in 1963.

But despite his admiration for Nadal, Laver believes that Federer - winner of 16 Grand Slam titles - is going through one of the best phases of his career.

'I think Roger looks like he's playing his best tennis, he's a little more confident. He's going for his shots and they are going in,' Laver said, sitting on a terrace just 50 metres from Rod Laver Arena.

Lots of times, he goes for his shots and they keep missing or he mistimes the ball. I don't see that at this very moment.'

'Potentially he has an equal footing with Nadal, but maybe there are surprises, maybe Nadal has got new things up his sleeve, maybe so does Roger, because Roger in the last year has made pretty effective drop shots.'

Laver believes that the drop shot could destabilize the game of Nadal, who defeated Federer in 17 out of 26 matches, including their only previous meeting in Melbourne in the 2009 final.

'Nadal generally is six, eight, ten feet behind the baseline. At some opportunities, if the ball goes slower, shorter, you have a chance to drop shot. You bring Nadal in, and sometimes, that works,' said Laver.

'You are going to be able to make your passing shots. And if you do that, you might make Nadal not as confident about the way he is playing. If you leave Nadal in the baseline and he stays there, and he's going to shoot those heavy forehands and backhands...'

Another factor which Laver believes could influence the semi-finals is the physical requirements that Nadal needed to defeat Czech Timas Berdych on Tuesday night - four intense sets in 4 hours 16 minutes.

Federer, by contrast, disposed of Argentina Juan del Potro in straight sets earlier Tuesday.

'He (Nadal) had a long match in the quarter finals. Is he fit? And he has problems little bit with the knees.

'You can say, yes, Roger has an edge to win. He has a good chance. It's creating an upset, it used to be Roger who was getting upset. Hopefully he makes some upsets.'

Laver is clear on the endless debate on who is the best tennis player in history.

For him, it only makes sense to talk about who is the best player of every era, since 1960s matches cannot be compared with those of the third millennium.

The rackets, for instance, were very different back then, games were played on grass during the entire season, except in Europe, Laver recalls.

He has unforgettable memories of those times and of his rivalry with Ken Rosewall, another great Australian. Laver therefore understands the meaning for Nadal and Federer of the 'classic' that they have been creating over eight seasons.

'Rivalries create great tennis, and that's the thing I've had with Ken Rosewall. We played a lot of matches, you like the challenge. It's nice to win the tournament, but you also want to play the best and beat the best. And that's what challenges are,' Laver said.