 David Nalbandian was Federer 's biggest rival in his early career . The two played each other 19 times , with Federer leading 11 – 8 . Nalbandian dominated early on , taking all of their first five matches from 2002 – 03 . Federer reversed this trend at the 2003 Masters Cup , where he recorded his first victory , and would go on to win 11 of their last 14 meetings . Federer led 6 – 5 on hard courts , 1 – 0 on grass , and 3 – 1 on clay courts , while Nalbandian led 2 – 1 on carpet . Notable meetings include Nalbandian 's win in a fifth @-@ set tiebreaker to win the 2005 Masters Cup , and Federer 's win in the 2006 French Open semifinals . They met each other six times in Grand Slam tournaments , with Federer leading 4 – 2 . 
