For the second year running, the men’s singles final in tennis’s most prestigious tournament produced a match of heart-stopping intensity. But this year the script saw a slightly different ending. Instead of losing out to his opponent in a marathon fifth set, Roger Federer sealed a sixth Wimbledon and more importantly, 15 th grand slam title, breaking Pete Sampras’s record.
It has been a remarkable summer for Federer, who won the French Open for the first time just a month ago. The year didn’t begin quite so well for the Swiss great, with critics still talking about his loss to Rafael Nadal in last year’s Wimbledon and speculating that Federer’s reign at the pinnacle of professional tennis was over. Some killjoys will continue to undermine Federer’s victories at Roland Garros and Wimbledon, since he did not defeat Nadal on court in the former and the Spaniard was not around to defend his title at the latter. But considering that Federer’s 15 titles have come in the short span of six years, it is hard to argue that he isn’t the greatest player of his generation.
Is he the greatest ever? The sport has evolved so much since the days of Arthur Ashe and Rod Laver that comparing players from different eras is irrelevant. Contrary to appearances, tennis is not merely a test of human skills where technology plays no role. Technical advances, changes in rules and unknowables like the quality of opposition these great champions faced in their times renders this exercise meaningless. It is enough to look on with awe at Federer’s beautiful game and the way he never seems to be working too hard on court. He almost floats on the court and plays with effortless finesse and beauty. Not for him the ugly and brutal power rallies that unfortunately dominate the sport today. Still, on Sunday it was his mental fortitude that got him through, not his artistry.
Every great champion needs a worthy opponent, and on Sunday Andy Roddick played the part in Nadal’s absence. Nobody expected him to put up much of a fight against the Swiss, but he played, perhaps, the match of his life and gave Federer a real fright. But the Swiss champion is in a league of his own now. Even if he were to put his racket up right now, he would be assured of his place in the pantheon of sporting, not just tennis, greats.
CROSS OF GREATNESS
If Roger Federer looks back at 2008, he might want to treat himself to a wry smile. Last year, same time same place, he was at his exquisite best, mixing sublime passes with outrageous winners and even more daring crosses; yet he lost.
This year, he was nowhere near his top, often descending even into levels of ordinariness; yet he won the title to become, at least on the Grand Slam scale, the greatest tennis player.
For many, though, he was already the best ever: after all, he moves like a ballerina on the court; he hits the ball with such finesse that it almost feels like he is whispering sweet-nothings into the ear of a lover; he has power too but his angles are the envy of even geometry and trigonometry.
More mundanely, he has won 15 Slam titles, more than any
other player before; he has conquered virtually every surface that the game could think of; plus, he has also been Number One for 237 straight weeks.
The only irritant, however, is 2008. During that heart-breaking year, he lost his way at Roland Garros and, to an extent, his aura at Wimbledon; ironically, the first surface had always mocked while the second one all but worshipped him.
Both times, one man, indeed one machine, stood in his way: Rafael Nadal. The golden retriever humbled him on clay first and then out-nerved him on grass. Federer didn’t see it immediately but he (Nadal) had assumed the proportions of a mental block: he acknowledged it only after passing the French Open test this May.
This year, of course, an injured Nadal lost to Robin Soderling early in Paris, and missed the action in London; Federer promptly looked history in the eye and it blinked. But the mirror will keep asking him the same question every morning: could he have crossed these last two hurdles if Nadal had stood on the other side of the net. Probably not. Federer surely understands this. That is why his job is not yet over; he shall
carry the cross until he tames the tormentor. Yes, he did it recently, in Madrid and on a slow court too, just before the French Open; but the challenge is to follow it up in a Grand Slam.
True, he won’t be under pressure anymore. He has subdued the doubts in his mind, surely with some help from fate; he will play with a free will when they meet next. Hopefully, he would also be at his sublime best as that is the only way he can dismantle Nadal’s assiduously built game.
The signs, though, were ominous on Sunday. Federer didn’t call the shots in the Wimbledon final; in fact, his magic was fleeting and, quite often, his movement was ungainly too. There were glimpses of his genius but that was overshadowed by his anxiety.
But then, when you are on the threshold of greatness and the audience is as exalted as it was around the Centre Court, even the wind might develop cold feet. Yet, Federer held on: he won two tie-breakers but looked sheepish in the other two sets.
In the final set, typically, he dug into the last reserves in his soul. He clung on to his serve and waited for Roddick to falter; but the American, with a Yankee-style cap on his head, kept pace. After one hour and 35 minutes, and 30 games, Roddick capitulated.
Federer, the quiet stalker, roared like a lion. He had allowed himself the minor transgression twice earlier during the match: once in the second set, when he came back from 2-6 down to win the tie-breaker; again, just a few games earlier, when he was serving 15-40 and Roddick had a whiff of the Trophy.
He could afford to cry one more time, like he had done after losing the Australian Open in an epic final and also after winning the French Open rather easily. But he didn’t: he was in the mood to smile. After all, he had just become Number One again, if not the best tennis player ever.
FEDERER THE GREATEST, CONCEDES SAMPRAS
Pete Sampras hailed Roger Federer as the greatest player of all time on Sunday after the Swiss superstar surpassed his Grand Slam record with a sixth Wimbledon title.
“In my book, he’s the greatest of all time. He has his critics and people point to Rafael Nadal beating him, but for me he’s the greatest. He is a legend and an icon,” said Sampras.
“He is a great champion and a good guy. He’s very humble, which I like.” Sampras predicted that Federer, who is still only 27, can go on and set more Grand Slam records. “He can win 17, 18 majors at least. He’s only 27 and he can do it if he stays healthy.”
The American, who played his last Wimbledon in 2002, flew in overnight to see Federer launch an assault on his record of 14. “He is effortless when he plays. He serves big, has a great forehand and his backhand. I’m a fan of how he plays, what he’s about... he’s a class guy on and off the court. He’s fun to watch.”
HAIL KING FEDERER
The guy’s a legend and now he’s an Icon. His 15 majors, that’s a lot of majors, that’s a lot of work. He’s a credit to the game. The critics say (Rod) Laver, and (Rafael) Nadal beat him a few times in majors, but he’s won all the majors, he’s going to win a few more here, so in my book he is (the greatest).
Pete Sampras, 14 time Grand Slam champion
Winning the French Open in May, and in doing so collecting all four Grand Slam trophies, in my opinion, has made him the greatest player in history.
Boris Becker, three-time Wimbledon champion
It’s amazing what sort of shots he can come up with from impossible positions... It’s an unbelievable effort to have 15 Grand Slam titles.
Rod Laver.
For me Roger is the greatest player ever who played the tennis game. We are going to see so much more of Federer in the future, he is going to win more grand slam tournaments.
Bjorn Borg, 11-time Grand Slam winner
It’s a combination of how many Grand Slams have you won, how many tournaments have you won, how many years you were number one and he’s got all those combinations.
Martina Navratilova, nine-time Wimbledon champion
The guy is one of the greatest male athletes of all time.
Serena Williams, 11 time Grand Slam champion
The consistency in the big tournaments is ridiculous. No one will ever match that.
Andy Murray
For me Roger is the greatest player ever who played the tennis game. We are going to see so much more of Federer in the future, he is going to win more grand slam tournaments.
Bjorn Borg, 11-time Grand Slam winner
It’s a combination of how many Grand Slams have you won, how many tournaments have you won, how many years you were number one and he’s got all those combinations.
Martina Navratilova, nine-time Wimbledon champion
The guy is one of the greatest male athletes of all time.
Serena Williams, 11 time Grand Slam champion
The consistency in the big tournaments is ridiculous. No one will ever match that.
Andy Murray
