When Wimbledon 2006 kicks off this week at the All-England Club there will be few folks putting their money on someone other than Roger Federer, but probably not many.

At age 25, he has won the event the past three years and with a win last week at the Gary Weber Open, tied Bjorn Borg’s mark of 41 consecutive wins on grass. His first opponent Monday will more than likely become victim No. 42, establishing yet another record in a career that many expect to fall in line among the all-time greats. Throughout Federer’s domination of the sport, however, there has yet to be a dynamic foil to his grand slam greatness. McEnroe had Conners, and for a short time even Borg. Sampras had Agassi. Who does Federer have?

Since he began his rise to impossible heights, many have searched for that nemesis. Before he fell off the face of the planet, Andy Roddick seemed poise to challenge Federer, however, he never proved he had enough talent to defeat him. He is 0-11 lifetime versus the seven-time grand-slam champ. James Blake has always been the American up-and-comer fans have wanted to promulgate, but he has never found a way to meet Federer on the big stage, let alone defeat him in tournament play. By the way, he’s also is winless vs. Federer (0-3) for his career.

After much brainstorming, there is only one name that continually pops up as a viable rival: 20-year old Spanish sensation Rafael Nadal. After defeating Federer in the semi-finals last year at Roland Garros, he dropped the first set to Federer in this year’s French Open Final before denying the world No. 1 in four sets. That loss prevented Federer from tasting the only grand slam that has eluded him thus far in his career and ended a streak of 27 straight match wins at majors.

Just as potent as Federer is on grass, Nadal is on clay. He has won an astounding record 60 straight on the red surface and is undefeated on clay against Federer. Nadal is 6-1 for his career against Federer and has bested the Swiss native in every match they have played this season. In the three matches on hard surfaces for his career he is 2-1 against him. With a pristine 49-0 record heading into Wimbledon when not playing a person named Nadal, Federer has seen Nadal grower bolder and more confident with each match.

Though the rivalry between the two is only in its infant stages, many in the tennis world would like nothing more than for Nadal to fill the void as the Celtics to Federer’s Lakers, the Frazier to his Ali.

With a perpetual fire for the game, the bicep flexing Nadal has a swashbuckling style that is the opposite of the more composed and laid back champion that Federer is on the court. His lefty approach, which has caused problems for Federer, is always unique in itself. He rolls around in clay when he wins, and his long hair makes him look like tennis’ rock star to adoring girls.

The only questions that come into play when speaking of the five-year pro is if he can achieve just as much success at the other slams as he has at the French. If the rivalry is to continue to gain any substantial momentum, Nadal will have to put on a strong showing at Wimbledon and in the upcoming U.S. Open.

Last year, after his breakout win at Roland Garros, he lost in the second round at Wimbledon. He followed that with another minimal run in the U.S. Open when he lost to Blake in the third round. In his short career, Nadal has never been farther than the third round at the All-England Club for which he will enter as the No. 2 seed this week behind Federer.

This tournament will be just as important for Nadal in establishing his validity as a consistent champion as it will be for Federer in reasserting his dominance. Many believe Nadal will eventually improve his standing at the other slams and on surfaces besides clay. However, for a tennis population yearning for a new generational rivalry, the expectation meter has risen and Nadal is the one with the pressure to give them the second half of the equation.

Anthony Lopez is a regular contributor to Atomic Sports Media. He can be reached at anthony.lopez@atomicsportsmedia.com.