Born a year apart, two European sporting legends have endured countless battles, little knowing they would culminate in an entirely different arena. Born in 1986, Spain's Rafael Nadal (pictured, left) is one of three male tennis players to win 20 Grand Slam titles. Known as the "King of Clay" for his dominance of the French Open and other tournaments featuring clay courts, Nadal's style bears more than a passing resemblance to the modern attacking table tennis player. Lurking around the baseline, Nadal employs exceptional footwork to hit every possible ball with a "lasso-whip" forehand, his follow-through more vertical than across his body. Consequently, he generates substantially more topspin than his peers. All-time greats such as Andre Agassi and Pete Sampras averaged under 1,900 rpm, while Nadal's rival Roger Federer hovered around the 2,700 mark. Nadal, however, cruises at around 3,200 and tops out at a staggering 4,900. In other words, Nadal is actually looping the ball. Another athlete known for pushing the rpm into the red is Nico Rosberg (pictured, right). Rosberg was born in Germany in 1985 but grew up mostly in Monaco. Rosberg inherited his racing pedigree from his father, Finnish F1 World Champion Keke Rosberg. Young Nico would also reach the pinnacle of his sport in 2016, finishing the season as World Drivers' Champion. He decided to go out on top, retiring five days later. This week, the two speed demons would clash in an especially luxurious version of Thunderdome. Although the battle took place in Rosberg's home base of Monaco, the battle was staged on a miniature ping-pong table on Nadal's yacht. With mock seriousness, Rosberg dubbed the five-point sprint the "World Ambassador Cup." Employing steady backhand blocks, and occasionally even the rudiments of a chop-block, Rosberg raced to a 2-1 lead. Nadal, sticking to his signature forehand topspins, kept Rosberg on the defensive. After Nadal leveled the match at 2-all, it was sudden death for the championship. Facing Nadal's forehand fusillade, Rosberg eventually hit the net. Sidelined by injury for most of the year, the jubilant Nadal looked as if he had just won the elusive record-breaking 21st Grand Slam. "Ping Pong against @RafaelNadal on his @SunreefYachts...Who's next? Definitely no lack of emotions there...no chance to hide my competitiveness... It was a tight game!! Let's play again soon, Rafa," tweeted Rosberg. With two of the world's fastest athletes discovering the pulse-pounding speed and reflexes required to play table tennis, it is a safe bet that a rematch is already in the works.

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