I just want to share with you this article which is originally in Spanish. One
of John Wertheim's regular online readers of his column Tennis Mailbag
translated it in English.

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Finally, Ximo of London was kind enough to translate the Nadal-Federer into
English. Ximo writes: "I must admit it was hard to hold myself from adding
footnotes. So juicy is the text! I feel like an old tart getting so touched by
chivalry, but there must be worst ways of spending my free time."



Here's Ximo's translation ...


The day Federer visited Nadal


Two short careful knocks on room 449 in a luxurious hotel in Basel. Rafael Nadal
(the world No. 2) opens.



"Hola Rafa!" says Roger Federer.



"Hola, how are you?" replies Nadal, hardly believing the world No. 1 is standing
in front of him.



Federer is recovering from an injury and it's his first day without crutches. He
decided to surprise the man with whom he shares tennis world domination. Nadal
had arrived one hour before at Basel to have dinner with the managers of the
local tournament after giving up participation due to his knee tendonitis.



"Roger called and asked me for the hotel where Rafa was staying," explains
Vittorio Selmi, The ATP Tour manager. "When I told him he didn't think twice:
I'm on my way."



The fact that Federer lives in Basel might have made the meeting easier but
there are few sports where the No. 1 one keeps such an open and honest
relationship with his most direct rival. The Spaniard had won on Sunday night
the Madrid Masters series. One of the biggest achievements of his career.



Soon his phone rang showing a [text message]: "Hola, hombre! Rafa, bueno tennis
y Madrid! Muchos contento Rogelio por te."



The sentence was written in a car crash between Spanish and Italian that Federer
was sending to congratulate the Spaniard for his Madrid title. Nadal calls
Federer either "Number One" or "Rogelio," and Federer happily took up the
nickname.



Contact was re-established on Monday night. They didn't talk more than 20
minutes because Nadal had to fulfill his duties with the tournament. Federer did
have time to ask about the Madrid experience.



"It was hard, I felt lost," replied the Spaniard. Federer took off one sneaker
and showed his ankle to Nadal. It was still swollen from the injury he sustained
10 days before. And there was an unavoidable subject: soccer.



Federer regretted missing the tournament and therefore the opportunity to meet
his hero, Zinedine Zidane.



"Are you going to Shangai for the Masters?" asked Nadal.



Federer smiled. "I don't know, next week I start running and after that I will
start playing."



No more time left. Nadal left for the dinner, where he spoke better English than
with the press and Federer stayed to eat at the hotel.



It was already midnight when they crossed paths again. One on his way to bed and
the other going home. New exchange of good luck wishes. They want to continue
the chat in Shanghai.



Sports Illustrated senior writer Jon Wertheim covers tennis for the magazine and
is a regular contributor to SI.com.


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