Roger Federer’s early career head-to-head with Rafael Nadal painted a one-sided picture in favour of the Spaniard…

From 2008 to 2014, Nadal claimed 15 wins out of their 19 meetings.

But Federer soon shifted the balance, taking six wins from their next seven encounters. What did he change to spark that turnaround?

How Ivan Ljubicic helped Roger Federer’s game against Nadal

On the latest episode of ‘Beyond the Numbers’, Jim Courier broke down how Federer’s approach to playing Nadal shifted.

“He had to take six months off after he lost in the quarters of Wimbledon in 2016,” said Courier.

“That was an interesting period because that was the time when Ivan Ljubicic finally convinced him to change to a bigger racket.

“That helped him solve the riddle of [Rafael] Nadal.

“He went on a run against Rafa because he had a bigger sweet spot, and he was willing to make the backhand earlier, and that was a massive difference.”

Courier then recalled: “Do you remember that Australian Open final in 2017?”

Jessica Pegula’s coach, Mark Knowles, weighed in on how big of a step it was for Federer to switch rackets.

How Federer explained the impact of his new racket

Speaking after his fourth-round win at Indian Wells in 2017, Federer spoke about the impact of switching to a bigger racket and how it had impacted his game. The former World No.1 said:

“I think the backhand has gotten better because I have been able to put in so many hours on the racket now.”

“Since this year, I feel super comfortable with the racket, and I think I have gained confidence stepping into it.”

“I think it was the work that I had in [the offseason]. You never play 10 backhand-to-backhand shots, but in practice, you practice those a ton, and eventually, they are ingrained in the system. You need good footwork, because if the footwork is not good, you won’t be on top of the ball.”

The change paid off for Federer as he defeated Nadal at five events between 2017 and 2019.

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