It sure was a different time on the ATP World Tour back in 2004, the year Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal first kicked off their longstanding rivalry. Many of the players contesting fourth-round matches at the BNP Paribas Open today were years away from making any kind of a dent on the main tour.
With Federer racing away with a 6-2, 6-3 Indian Wells fourth-round win over Nadal in their 36th meeting, here’s a look back at what things were like the year two of the game’s greatest players first met.
While Indian Wells has been the host city since 1987, the tournament sponsor has undergone some changes over the years. Back in ’04, the event was in its third year of being recognized as the Pacific Life Open, and the trophy was a huge whale. It would remain under that name through 2008, before BNP Paribas took over 2009.
By the time Federer and Nadal played their first match against each other, the Swiss had already built a career most players could only dream of having. He had reached the No. 1 ranking for the first time in early 2004, with two Grand Slam titles under his belt. Before his initial encounter with Nadal in Miami, Federer was coming off the 14th singles title of his career—in Indian Wells, where he beat Tim Henman in the final.