Roger Federer said victory over Rafael Nadal in the final of the French Open on Sunday would be the crowning moment of his career.
The Swiss, who has won 12 grand-slam titles but has never triumphed at Roland Garros, has been beaten by the Spaniard in the final for the past two years.
Victory for Federer would make him only the sixth man to win all four grand-slam titles.
”That’s all I need in my career,” the world number one told reporters on Saturday, when asked what he would think if he beat Nadal.
”But then, even if I win, this is not the end of my career. I’ll still be looking for other titles. I still have many years ahead of me if my body and my physical condition allows, because I’m still very motivated.”
Federer, who has been working with former top-10 player Jose Higueras throughout the claycourt season, has beaten Nadal just once on clay in nine attempts — at the Hamburg Masters Series in 2007 — but said he had the game to win on Sunday.
”I’ve changed my game on clay over the last month,” Federer said. ”In the past I was less aggressive. Just waiting for a mistake from Rafa, I think that’s not the key to beat him. So it’s important to come up with the right plan, with the right aggressiveness, knowing on which points to use what type of play.” – Reuters