Top 5 finals between Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal

Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova. Serena Williams and Venus Williams. Pete Sampras and Andre Agassi. Andy Murray and Novak Djokovic. Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic. Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic. Open Era has seen a lot of rivalries but none could match the intensities and crowd pull of Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal. The two of them have set the hearts racing of a whole generation and converted a lot of passive tennis fans into die-hard Federer or Nadal fans.

If you look at the stats, Nadal seems to have a clear upper hand with 6 grand slam final victories against the former Swiss No.1 compared to Federer's 3 grand slam final victories against the Spanish ace. But on the court, the story was very different with some nail-biting matches between the two stars.

#5 2017 Australian Open Final (Federer def. Nadal 6-4, 3-6, 6-1, 3-6, 6-3)

At the Rod Laver Arena, Federer and Nadal started the match with easy exchanges but Federer started faster and won the first set in 34 minutes. Nadal came back in the second set and was leading 4-0 before the blink of an eye and won the set quite easily.

The Swiss ace took his revenge in the third set as he led 3-0 and wrapped up the set 6-1. The 6-1 drubbing didn't affect the Spanish star's mental strength as he came back and won the fourth set 6-3.

In the fifth set, Federer was trailing 1-3 but came back firing on all cylinders and won straight five games to win his 18th grand slam title, his first since the 2012 Wimbledon title. Also, he became the first 17th seed player to win a grand slam since Pete Sampras' 2002 US Open victory.

#4 2006 Internazionali BNL d'Italia Final (Nadal def. Federer 6-7, 7-6, 6-4, 2-6, 7-6)

Nadal and Federer receiving honours after 2006 BNL d'Italia final

This five hour and six minute match is viewed by many tennis analysts as the match that truly started the Nadal-Federer rivalry.

The Swiss player looked in control of the match from the word go. He won the first set and looked on course to win the second set but Nadal took the set from the then World No.1's hands with a brilliant comeback.

The then World No.2 used the momentum and won the third set 6-4. Federer gave a reply to that with his game as he wrapped up the fourth set 6-2. Then, the Swiss went on to take a 4-1 lead in the final set but Nadal miraculously came back and won the set 7-6 with some brilliant work.

19 years of age at that time, Nadal equalled Bjorn Borg's record of 16 titles as a teenager with a win over Federer.

#3 2009 Australian Open Final (Nadal def. Federer 7-5, 3-6, 7-6, 3-6, 6-2)

Nadal receiving the 2009 Australian Open Trophy with a tearful Federer in the backdrop

This was the first grand slam final played between the two on a hard court. Nadal's confidence was in the sky after he won the historic 2008 Wimbledon title beating the then World No.1 in the final.

Top-seeded Spanish star went into the final with only two days of preparation compared to Federer's three and also had to face a semi-final that lasted for more than five hours.

Nadal came out on the top at the end of a match that lasted 4 hours and 23 minutes which left the 27-year old Swiss in tears as he received the runner-up plate from his idol, Rod Laver.

#2 2007 Wimbledon Final (Federer def. Nadal 7-6, 4-6, 7-6, 2-6, 6-2)

Nadal and Federer receiving honours after 2007 Wimbledon final

Federer and Nadal were now shaping a rivalry that will go on to be talked about even years later. Nadal was establishing himself as the king of clay with his consecutive French Open titles but he had not proved himself yet off the clay.

The Swiss defending champion won the first set courtesy of a tie-breaker. His Spanish counter-part won the second set 6-4. Federer came back to win the third set again courtesy of a tie-breaker. Nadal thrashed the Swiss 6-2 in the fourth set but injured himself in the process.

Federer benefiting from the injury took home the glorious Wimbledon trophy for a straight fifth year by defeating the Spanish ace 6-2 in the final set.

#1 2008 Wimbledon Final (Nadal def. Federer 6-4, 6-4, 6-7 (5-7), 6-7 (8-10), 9-7)

Nadal and Federer receiving honours after 2008 Wimbledon final

In the lead-up to the match, Federer was at his peak. He had been the No.1 for 231 consecutive weeks leading up to the match. Nadal's confidence was riding high after defeating Federer in the final of the French Open.

The match started late due to rain and it rained a lot of times during the match as well. Seven hours into the match, both of them were locked at 7-7 in the fifth set and the referee decided that the game will be called off for the day at 8-8 but the former Swiss No.1 faltered at that point and lost the match paving way for a new Wimbledon champion.

The match went down into the history of tennis as one of the greatest matches that was ever played between the two biggest icons of the game.