Then he did a complete 180 and came out swinging in the third set, hitting everything flush, being aggressive and hitting with tremendous depth and accuracy. It was simply phenomenal tennis from the 20-time grand slam winner as Aussie great Pat Cash lauded his revival as "absolutely stunning".
Earlier, Nadal wrestled the upper hand back Roger Federer in a brutal second-set comeback after the Swiss star clinched the opener in a tiebreak.
Nadal secured the first break of the match to go up 3-1 in the second as Federer failed to win a point in his worst service game of the day.
The Spaniard pounced, holding serve then breaking again as the Fed Express lost his way. After a brilliant opening to the contest, Federer tripped midway through the second set and Nadal wasn't going to let the rare opportunity slip, showing off his ruthless side to win the set 6-1 and square things up at one set apiece.
Federer's level dropped significantly, going off the boil and looking nothing like the man he was in the first set.
There was an eerie quiet around Centre Court when the blockbuster kicked off as the tension affected more than just the players.
But neither Federer nor Nadal showed any nerves as they produced a spellbinding level of tennis in the first set which Federer won 7-6 (7-3) in a tiebreak.
Both players were outstanding in what was largely a mistake-free opening as they showed just why, even well into their 30s, they're a cut above the rest of the circuit.
Federer held his first two games in quick time and Nadal was also doing it easy off his own racquet. The Swiss dropped just three points in his opening four service games while Nadal conceded a mere two points in his opening three service games.
Federer had a break point to go up 5-3 in the opener but as he and Nadal danced around the court in a long rally, the 37-year-old caved first and hit a backhand into the net to give the Spaniard a reprieve.
Nadal won the next two points to escape the awkward situation and level things up at 4-4 and the match continued on serve with neither man able to grab the upper hand.
Down 6-5, Nadal looked certain to take the set to a tiebreak but from 40-0 up he lost the next three points as Federer went on the offensive, blasting a winner to take things to deuce. "This has come out of nowhere. This is now a battle for Nadal," one BBC commentator said.
But Nadal kept his composure with some clutch serves to ensure we got that breaker and won the first point by showing incredible court speed to reach a ball he had no right to hit.
But Federer roared to life, coming back from two mini-breaks and winning the set with a cracking forehand winner.
