On a temporary clay court in Seville, an 18-year-old Rafael Nadal defeated world No. 2 Andy Roddick 6-7(6), 6-2, 7-6(6), 6-2 in the 2004 Davis Cup final. The victory gave Spain a decisive 2-0 lead over the United States and introduced a teenager whose first Grand Slam title still lay six months in the future.
Captain's risk, a teenager's answer
Spanish captain Jordi Arrese made a bold selection call, benching former Roland-Garros champion Juan Carlos Ferrero for the world No. 51. Nadal had lost to Roddick in straight sets just three months earlier at the US Open, conceding the first set at love.
Before the match, a nervous Nadal turned to teammate Carlos Moyá for reassurance. Moyá cut him short directly: "Don't be a dumbass. Go ahead and play."
One point that swung a nation's hope
Inside the Olympic Stadium, a record 27,000 spectators created a wall of noise. Nadal dropped the opening set on a tiebreak but began working the rallies with relentless physicality. By the end of the third set he had struck 60 winners.
Roddick earned a set point at 6-5 in the third-set tiebreak, which would have put him two sets to one up. Nadal saved it with a feathery drop shot, then closed out the match in just under three hours and forty minutes.
Roddick told reporters afterwards, "I just ran into someone who played too well... Every once in a while people come along and they're big-match players." Nadal later described the feeling of that afternoon simply: "I played in a rush of pure instinct, almost without pausing to think. Never has a crowd been more behind me, before or since."
The Seville triumph secured Spain's second Davis Cup title. A career of clay-court dominion had found its first great stage.
