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Roger Federer

Federer, Nadal go Dubai while Gonzalez goes to Vegas

March 5, 2008 by Around the ATP Team

A comprehensive preview for the tournaments that are being played this week. First up is Dubai that features prominent players such as Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal. And then there is the tournament in Las Vegas. It doesn’t have the starpower of Dubai but it’s still an interesting one feating Fernando Gonzalez among others.
Dubai

  • Singles Draw
  • Doubles Draw

What can we really say about this tournament except that money talks. When you have 8 of the top 10 players and a cutoff of 57, this tournament is almost tougher than a Masters Draw, in the sense that the top seeds can face people at the top of the game in the first round. This is no more obvious than at the very top of the draw, where #1 seed and record four-time champion Roger Federer has to open against none other than Andy Murray, ranked #12. With so many fascinating early matchups in this draw, it would take us all day to really do it justice. But here’s a more realistic preview. The toughest opponent in Federer’s quarter is arguably Murray. Should he get past that, he would likely face friend and compatriot Stanislas Wawrinka or #5 seed Nikolay Davydenko in the quarterfinals. Of course, it’s Federer, so it’s hard to see him losing before the semifinals, at least. This is Federer’s first competition since losing in the Australian Open semifinals, and he said today that he is rested, ready to go, and that the break has been good for him.
The second quarter is highlighted by #4 seed David Ferrer against Tommy Haas. Haas had a good run in Dubai last year, making the semifinals before losing to Federer. But considering the bad losses Haas has had since coming back to the tour a few weeks ago in Delray Beach, we see Ferrer winning this one comfortably. This quarter is chock full of solid players who, should they find some form, could produce some upsets; Jarkko Nieminen, Feliciano Lopez, Janko Tipsarevic, and Olivier Rochus are all capable of showing up on the big stages against the very top players. #8 seed Tomas Berdych opens against Gael Monfils, playing his first match since last September, when he retired due to injury.
Things get no easier in the bottom half. #7 seed Richard Gasquet opens against Dmitry Tursunov. Though Gasquet might be the favorite on paper, he is 0-2 against Tursunov, including a loss in their most recent meeting earlier this year in Sydney. Another interesting match in this quarter is last year’s runner-up Mikhail Youzhny against 2002 Dubai champion Fabrice Santoro. Should Youzhny make it through that match, we would likely see an intriguing second round between Youzhny and #3 seed Novak Djokovic. Though this quarter is an excellent one, Djokovic should advance to the semifinal if he has fully recovered from the flu that plagued him during Davis Cup.

And to the final quarter of the draw, where things get no easier. Making a rare appearance overseas when there is a US tournament to pick from, #6 seed Andy Roddick makes his debut in Dubai against 2001 champion Juan Carlos Ferrero. Roddick, however, is 3-0 against Ferrero, all matches on outdoor hardcourt, and should fancy his chances if he is not too jetlagged after the long trip from Memphis. This section contains local wildcard Mahmoud Nader, who isn’t worth mentioning except that he’s so obscure that he doesn’t have a ranking and is not even mentioned on the ITF website. Rounding out the draw is #2 Rafael Nadal, who has a tough opener in Philipp Kohlschreiber. A Roddick/Nadal quarterfinal should be in the cards, and we can hope that should that match come to fruition that Roddick would play better than in their match at Indian Wells last year, which was played under similar conditions.
Las Vegas

  • Singles Draw
  • Doubles Draw

In stark contrast to Dubai, Las Vegas’s Tennis Channel Open lacks major starpower but still has a respectable field that includes three top 20 players. And the draw still holds plenty of interesting matches. Right at the top of the draw, #1 seed Fernando Gonzalez, returning after a short injury layoff, will look for revenge against Dudi Sela, who beat Gonzalez last year in Israel in a memorable Davis Cup playoff tie. Surely, the loss still stings for Gonzalez and he will be looking forward to the chance for revenge. Also in this section is American wild card John Isner and #6 seed Michael Llodra, who has already won two titles this year. A quarterfinal between Gonzalez and Llodra would be an interesting contrast in style.
The stronger 2nd quarter of the draw is headed by #3 seed Marcos Baghdatis, who has a tricky opening meeting with always-entertaining Vince Spadea. Right below them is an interesting matchup between two players trying to rebuild their form and ranking – wild card entry Robby Ginepri and Xavier Malisse. Rising star Ernests Gulbis is in this section and Robin Soderling, coming off his two consecutive indoor final appearances, will try to take his sky-high serve toss outdoors to windy Las Vegas.
In the bottom half, the third quarter contains several players who came from the Latin American claycourt swing who will try to get their hardcourt feet before the two masters events coming up. Potito Starace will take on fellow claycourter Carlos Berlocq, and #4 seed Guillermo Canas has an interesting opener against Thomas Johansson.
The bottom quarter has undoubtedly the most interesting first round match of the event – and quite a shame considering the relatively weak field – between defending champion and #2 seed Lleyton Hewitt and last year’s semifinalist (he lost to Hewitt then) Marat Safin. Also in this section, #8 seed Nicolas Kiefer plays only his second event of the year, and the highest ranked American in the draw – Sam Querrey – will try to make an impact.

Filed Under: Archives, Featured Columns Tagged With: Andy Murray, Daily Roundups, Fabrice Santoro, Guillermo Canas, Lleyton Hewitt, Marat Safin, Robby Ginepri, Roger Federer, Xavier Malisse

Will Sampras Return?

February 24, 2008 by Mike McIntyre

When Pete Sampras defeated Andre Agassi in the finals of the 2002 US Open, the retirement debate began almost immediately. Was Pete going to go out on top or would he continue to try to add to the record-breaking legacy he had created? While that decision took a year to officially sort out, I’ve always wondered if Pete did the right thing. Sure, he had been struggling that last year on tour. His motivation did not seem to be as high. Getting knocked out at Wimbledon in the second round was a major shock to the tennis world. And yet his run during those two weeks at Flushing Meadows certainly showed he still had what it took to continue at a high level. During that time he knocked off his young heir apparent Andy Roddick, and perhaps his greatest rival of all time in Agassi.

Pete Sampras 1

But Sampras opted to go out a champion, and nobody could fault him for that. He had a young family to spend time with. His 32 year old body was taking a beating after so many years on the tour, and after tasting success at almost every possible major venue, he felt it was time to call it a career. Many wondered if Sampras would be content in retirement. At the time, I would not have been surprised if a year or two later he decided to come back while he was still young enough to compete at a high level. Maybe he could have put away another Wimbledon or two before Roger Federer truly hit his peak. Instead, no one heard a whisper from Sampras. He kept to himself while spending time with his family and practicing his game on the golf course, not the tennis court.
Almost four years would pass before the world would see Pistol Pete on a tennis court again. It started very simply, with an exhibition match against young American Robby Ginepri on April 6, 2006. Sampras could have decided to take on a fellow retiree such as Jim Courier or John McEnroe. Instead, he chose to test himself against a current professional. An interesting choice no doubt. While Ginepri would take the exhibition 6-3, 7-6, Sampras must have been content with his showing after such a long layoff and against a much younger opponent.
Talk turned quite quickly to the prospect of a Sampras/Federer clash of the ages. While that would not materialize for some time, Sampras did try his hand at World Team Tennis and some events on the Outback Champions Series, a senior level tour. Many remarked that Sampras still had some serious skills on the court; John McEnroe even stated he felt Sampras could be a top five threat on the lawns of Wimbledon.
Fast forward to the fall of 2007. Talk of a Sampras/Federer exhibition matchup came to fruition with a three match tour of Asia. Sampras had been practicing quite heavily leading up to the encounters, and although Federer was coming off the Tennis Masters Cup and a long season of tennis on top of that, he was still the clear overwhelming favourite. Federer also does not strike me as the type of competitor who simply goes through the motions just to entertain the crowd. I have no doubt that he was eager to show his was able to defeat Sampras, whose Grand Slam titles record he is trying to catch.
All three matches were quite close. Federer took the opening encounter 6-4, 6-3 in Seoul, Korea. Two days later the score was even closer; Federer again won in staight sets 7-6, 7-6. The last match of the series was the most remarkable, with Sampras actually winning in two straight sets, 7-6, 6-4. Clearly his serve and volley game was something that gave Federer somewhat of a challenge. The fact that a 36 year old Pete Sampras was even able to make these matches close against the 26 year old Roger Federer was incredible. Sampras must have left the Orient feeling pretty happy with his accomplishments. Might he also have been wondering about how he would fare against some of the other top ATP players of today? Part of him had to have, at least for a fleeting moment, considered how he might hold up against today’s players in a real tournament scenario.

Here we are now at the start of the 2008 season. Instead of taking a break from his recent exhibition revival, Sampras is scheduled to play Tommy Haas (who replaces an injured Marat Safin) at next week’s SAP Open in San Jose. Again testing himself against a current player, I must wonder what Sampras hopes to achieve with this or future matches against today’s players. Is he trying to see if he can defeat another one of today’s big names? Trying to see whether his encounter with Federer at the end of a long season was just a fluke?
Another exhibition match against Federer looms in March at Madision Square Gardens in New York City. This is good opportunity for Sampras to take on the current number one on his home soil. But then where does he go from there? Why is he continuing to play against today’s players and not his contemporaries who still dabble in the sport on the senior tour?
The only realistic and reasonable answer in my opnion is that Sampras is systematically gearing himself up for a return to the ATP tour. Not a full return, and perhaps not even a limited schedule, but certainly he is trying to gauge his response to today’s challengers. The thought has to have been planted in his head, and further nourished by his recent success against Federer. Despite his repeated denials, I would not be the least bit surprised if Sampras asked for, and was granted, a wild card at the Queen’s Club tournament in June in order to prepare for his ultimate goal, a return to the All-England club at Wimbledon. While he may be in too deep against a Federer or Djokovic, he could still give just about anyone else a good run for their money on his favourite surface. Keeping his age and fitness level in mind, he would have to try to limit his matches to three or four sets and avoid a long, drawn out five-setter. But with his booming serve still in order and his net game tuned up, I’m sure he would still be able to make it to the last sixteen.
Something more than just a desire to stay fit and have fun with today’s crop of players is at work here. While Sampras has given no official word that would indicate this is what he has in mind, don’t be surprised if we see Pistol Pete one more time on Centre Court at Wimbledon this summer. Tennis fans of all ages and backgrounds would certainly be in for a treat if this were to happen.

Filed Under: Featured Columns Tagged With: All-England club, Andre Agassi, Andy Roddick, exhibition matchup, Flushing Meadows, Pete Sampras, Pistol Pete, Queen's Club Tournament, Robby Ginepri, Roger Federer, US Open, Wimbledon

Novak Djokovic Wins Australian Open 2008

February 7, 2008 by Manfred Wenas

Serbian tennisplayer Novak Djokovic has won the Australian Open 2008 this Sunday. Djokovic defeated French tournament revelation Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the finals in four sets: 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, 7-6.

Djokovic1

It was the first Grandslam title for the 20 year old Djokovic, who reached the finals of last year’s edition of the US Open where he lost to Roger Federer.
Djokovic, who was seeded third at the Australian Open 2008 took his revenge when he ousted Roger Federer in the semi finals. Tsonga reached the finals by beating Rafael Nadal and Andy Murray among others.
Tsonga had a dreamstart. The 22 year old won the first set which meant the first set loss for Djokovic this year in Melbourne. However Djokovic bounced back and broke Tsonga’s serve in the seventh game of the second set which he won with 6-4.
In the third set he cashed in his seventh setpoint. The fourth set ended after an injury treatment for Djokovic in the tie break. Djokovic only needed one matchpoint to take the crown of this year’s edition of the Australian Open.
Djokovic is the first Serbian player to ever win a Grand Slam tournament.
He jokingly thanked the Australian spectators who supported Tsonga during the final.
“I still love you guys, don’t worry,” he laughed.
He also thanked the Serbian supporters who stood by him through thick and thin throughout the tournament.
“I’m so proud of course with myself in the first place but then to be the first Serbian who won the Grand Slam title, I think it’s a crazy house back in Serbia and thankyou (to) my country.
“I love you guys if you’re watching.”

Filed Under: Archives Tagged With: Andy Murray, Australian Open, Grandslam, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer

They Battle For The No.1 Ranking

February 4, 2008 by Randy Walker

Roger Federer defeated Rafael Nadal to win Wimbledon. Nadal beat Federer to win the French Open. They are battling for the No. 1 ranking in the world. But who has the better song?
The two champions who make up the greatest rivalry in professional tennis are celebrated in song by the Hoboken, N.J.-based band “Binge” led by John Macom and Joe Titone. “Grand Slam Man” is about Federer, a Swiss man who has won eight Grand Slam titles and is seeking his third straight US Open title starting Monday. “Vamos Rafa” is the song about the Spaniard Nadal, the two-time French Open champion and the No. 2 seed behind Federer at the US Open. “Grand Slam Man” and “Vamos Rafa” are available for sale at www.tennistunes.com. (Lyrics are below)
Other songs on sale include Binge’s odes to Maria Sharapova and Martina Hingis, as well as the song “Hey, Hey, It’s Andy Roddick” about the 2003 US Open champion.
Binge, led by lead singer Macom, is a smashed up pop-rock band from Hoboken, N.J., that has had songs featured on popular television shows Dawson’s Creek, Felicity, American Embassy and Party of Five. Macom and the band are probably best known for their original underground hit “Anna Kournikova” and their ditty “Krispy Kreme Donut Song.” Inspired by the success of “Anna” and his love for the sport of tennis, Macom, along with Brooklyn’s Joe Titone, wrote follow-up songs “Grand Slam Man” about Roger Federer, “Vamos Rafa” about Rafael Nadal, “Hey, Hey, It’s Andy Roddick” about the American standout and “Maria Sharapova.”

Vamos Rafa

Music by John Macom
Lyrics by John Macom/Joseph Titone
Performed by Binge
© 2006 John Macom (BMI)/ Joseph Titone (BMI)
Vamos Rafa, vamos Rafa
El Toreador
Vamos Rafa, vamos Rafa
It’s you they adore
The girls go wild when you hit one down the line
You play with such gusto, mucho gusto all the time
Vamos Rafa, vamos Rafa
You’ve got them on the run
Vamos Rafa, vamos Rafa
You should show them your guns
You make King Juan Carlos happy when you win
You’ve got a nasty drop shot and serious, serious topspin
When you leave Mallorca
And get to New Yorka
You will find they adore you too
And your fancy tennis shoes
And your Uncle Tony too
Vamos Rafa, vamos Rafa
Can I borrow your shoes?
Vamos Rafa, vamos Rafa
With them I’ll never lose
Adios amigos see you next time on the courts
In the meantime, por favor, could you do something about those shorts?

Filed Under: Archives Tagged With: Grand Slam Man, Maria Sharapova, music, Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer, Vamos Rafa, Wimbledon

Roger Federer Suffers Loss At The Masters Cup

January 31, 2008 by Randy Walker

Roger Federer suffered only his third career loss at the Tennis Masters Cup Monday, losing to Chile’s Fernando Gonzalez 4-6, 7-6 (1), 7-5 in the opening round robin match in Shanghai. Federer’s last loss at the year-end championships came in the 2005 championship match to his nemesis David Nalbandian of Argentina. In the book THE ROGER FEDERER STORY, QUEST FOR PERFECTION(www.rogerfedererbook.com , New Chapter Press, $24.95), author Rene Stauffer details Federer’s loss to Nalbandian in the Masters Cup and the circumstances surrounding his last loss in the year-end championships. The excerpt is below.
In October 11, Federer was in Allschwil, Switzerland training with coun­tryman Michael Lammer, when he was once again struck by the “Curse of Basel.” At the same facility where he suffered a muscle tear the previous year, Federer injured his right ankle. He felt a searing pain and fell to the court and could not get back up. “At first I thought I had broken something,” he explained. The diagnosis was not that bad, but it was bad enough. Federer tore ligaments in his ankle and while surgery was not required, it forced him to withdraw from the events in Madrid, Basel and Paris. It was debatable if there was enough time for him to recover to play in the year-end Tennis Masters Cup in Shanghai in a month’s time.
Federer’s foot was in a cast and he was on crutches for two weeks. He did everything he could to accelerate the therapy to enable him to play in Shanghai. He underwent ultrasound, lymph drainage, massages, elevated the legs, special exercises—everything. To his benefit, he was not the only top player who was injured as the top 10 rankings at the time read more like a list of casualties. Three former Grand Slam tournament champions withdrew from Shanghai—Marat Safin was out with a bad left knee and Andy Roddick withdrew with a bad back. Lleyton Hewitt chose not to compete in Shanghai so he could spend time with his new wife, Bec Cartwright, who was expecting the couple’s first child.
A fourth former Grand Slam tournament winner, Andre Agassi, arrived in China still gimpy after injuring ligaments in his left ankle around the same time as Federer’s injury. After losing in his first round-robin match to Nikolay Davydenko 6-4, 6-2, Agassi also withdrew from the event. Since he won the tournament in Madrid in October, Nadal was troubled with a left-foot injury that caused him to withdraw from the events in Basel and Paris. Although he was in China with the expectation of competing, he also withdrew from the tournament just before his first scheduled match. Within a matter of hours, the tournament lost two of its most popular draws—Agassi and Nadal—and Federer’s start was still doubtful as well.
The two-time defending champion arrived in Shanghai early to prepare, but he still didn’t know until two days before the event began whether he would compete at all. The typhoon-proof stadium in Shanghai was nearly sold out—but for the ambitious Chinese organizers—the situation was far worse than a typhoon. After a highly successful staging of the 2002 Tennis Masters Cup in Shanghai, Chinese officials were able to lure the event back to their country for three years starting in 2005. During the two-year stint of the tournament in Houston, the Chinese built the magnificent Qi Zhong Stadium that seats 15,000 spectators in the Minhang district in southwestern Shanghai. The fa­cility features a retractable roof that is shaped like a blooming magnolia—the city’s emblem. It is an eight-ton structure with eight retractable pieces that open and close. Since eight is Federer’s favorite number—because his birthday is on the eighth day of the eighth month—it made for a special connection between him and the tournament. Shanghai was also special for Federer since it was the site of his Tennis Masters Cup debut in 2002—and the memories were still fond. He even made an extra trip to take part of the official opening in the stadium in early October.
Federer’s injury was definitely the most serious of his career to date. While he was healthy enough to play in the tournament, his expectations were low. He did not properly prepare for the event and did not rule out the possibility of losing all three of his round-robin matches. In his opening match, Federer surprised himself when he was able to de­feat David Nalbandian 6-3, 2-6, 6-4. He described the victory as one of the finest wins of his career, which gave some indication how ill-prepared for the tournament he actually felt.
Federer’s next match with Ivan Ljubicic became a high-point of the tour­nament. Ljubicic was regarded as a threat to win the title after posting the best indoor record of any player during the year. After Federer gave fans—and organizers—a scare when he called for a trainer to treat him on court before the third set, he saved three match points before prevailing in a 7-4 final-set tie-break. The win clinched Federer’s spot in the semifinals as the winner of his group.
In the semifinals, Federer registered an incredible 6-0, 6-0 thrashing of Gaston Gaudio of Argentina that not only moved him into the Tennis Masters Cup final for a third straight year, but gave him an 81-3 record for the year. He was within one match victory of tying John McEnroe’s record for the best won-loss record in the history of men’s tennis. In 1984, McEnroe won both the US Open and Wimbledon and achieved a record of 82-3. Nalbandian, whom Federer defeated in his opening round-robin match, was the only barrier that stood in his way of tying this important record.
However, unlike round-robin play, the final was a best-of-five set affair, making the achievement that much more difficult for the out-of-match-practice Federer. Tie-breaks decided the first two sets, with Federer winning a first-set tie-break 7-4 and a second-set tie-break 13-11. With two hours of arduous tennis needed to take the two-sets-to-love lead, Federer began to look weary in the early stages of the third set. Nalbandian took advantage and crawled back into the match. During a stretch in the fourth and fifth sets, Federer lost 10 straight games to trail 0-4 in the fifth set. At 0-30 in the fifth game of the final set, Federer, perhaps motivated by chants of “Roger! Roger!” as well as by his own will and pride, began to rally back into the match. Forty-five minutes later, he was just two points from victory serving for the match at 6-5, 30-0. Nalbandian, however, turned the tide again. Federer would later say, “I wasn’t playing to win any longer but just to make it as hard as possible for him.”
After breaking Federer back to force the final-set tie-break, Nalbandian rallied to win the match 6-7 (4), 6-7(11), 6-2, 6-1, 7-6 (3). Federer watched Nalbandian sink to the ground after the greatest victory of his career and as the first Argentinean Masters champion in 31 years.
“I came closer to winning the tournament than I had thought,” said Federer. “Under these circumstances, this was one of the best performances of my career. This tour­nament was probably the most emotional one for me this year.”
Whether satisfied with his effort or not, the loss, nonetheless, meant the end of several of Federer’s streaks. It was his first defeat since the semifinals of the French Open in early June—a streak of 35 matches and the fifth-longest match winning streak in ATP history. (Nalbandian’s countryman Guillermo Vilas is the record-holder with 46 straight victories). The loss also marked his first defeat in a tournament final since July of 2003—a streak of 24 straight final-round matches. Although he only lost four matches, he ranked his 2005 season worse than 2004, since two of his four defeats happened at Grand Slam tournaments. “But this season was unbelievable as well,” he said. “At some stages, I felt invincible.”
Thanks to the star power of Federer, the Tennis Masters Cup was not a complete disaster for the Chinese promoters. The fledgling tennis movement in Asia continued. A few months later, the ATP renewed its contract for Shanghai to assume organization for the Masters through 2008. “If the tour­nament had been damaged by the many forfeits, then it was compensated for by one of the most exciting matches of the year,” the Shanghai Daily wrote the day after the epic Federer-Nalbandian final. John McEnroe was also satisfied. “It was nice to see how hard Federer fought to break my record,” McEnroe said. “Perhaps people will now realize that it’s not so easy to achieve a record of 82-3.”

Filed Under: Archives Tagged With: Curse of Basel, David Nalbandian, Fernando Gonzalez, Ivan Ljubicic, John McEnroe, Roger Federer, Roger Federer Book, Shanghai, Tennis Masters Cup

Federer-Lopez at 2003 Wimbledon helped turn Federer's career around

January 31, 2008 by Randy Walker

Roger Federer will face Feliciano Lopez in the round of 16 at the US Open on Monday, which brings back memories of another Grand Slam Round of 16 match between the two at Wimbledon in 2003. The match, which Federer nearly lost by a retirement, proved to be a career-altering victory for the Swiss as he was able to survive the encounter and go on to win his first Grand Slam title.
After years of Grand Slam failures, frustrations and unrealized potential, Federer finally broke through to win the first major title that many expected him to win. The following is a short excerpt from THE ROGER FEDERER STORY, QUEST FOR PERFECTION by Rene Stauffer (www.rogerfedererbook.com ) that explains the circumstances of the match at Wimbledon in 2003 on the eve of their match at the 2007 US Open.
Federer fought his way into the round of 16 with the loss of only one set to American Mardy Fish in the third round. In the traditional Monday playing of the round of 16 matches at Wimbledon, Federer faced Spaniard Feliciano Lopez on the cramped and notorious Court No. 2—dubbed the “Graveyard of Champions” due to its turbulent history of many of the all-time greats losing matches to unheralded challengers. The Spanish left-hander was ranked No. 52 in the world and certainly did not enjoy the fame of Sampras, whom Federer defeated two years ago in the same round.
The Swiss player took it easy on the weekend prior to his round of 16 match. He trained for just an hour and felt rested and in top form. Then, suddenly, in the warm-up of his match with Lopez, he felt a stabbing pain in his lower back after hitting a practice serve. “I thought, my God, what’s this? I couldn’t move anymore. Everything had seized up,” he explained later. He began his match with Lopez without his usual dynamic. After the second game of the match, he sat down in his chair, even though it was not a changeover, and called for the trainer.
Anxious minutes ticked away. While he was being treated with a heat cream by the trainer during his injury timeout, he lay on the grass turf and looked up at the sky in desperation. “I thought about giving up,” he said. “But then I hoped for a miracle or that the next black cloud would bring rain again.” His wish for rain did not come true, but a minor miracle did happen. Federer was able to continue play and went on to win a hard-fought, but straight-set 7-6 (5), 6-4, 6-4 victory. He had no idea how he did it and couldn’t believe his luck. “Lopez had plenty of opportunities to beat me in three sets or drag out the match,” he said. Federer said he began to feel better as time passed—and thanks to the pain killers as well as the increasing temperatures that loosened the muscles in his back. “It also helped that we were playing on a grass court and that Lopez was constantly looking to win the quick point,” Federer said. He also admitted later that the pain was so strong that it not only adversely affected his serve and return but he could hardly sit during changeovers.
Federer went on to win his breakthrough first Grand Slam title three matches later, defeating Sjeng Schalken of the Netherlands in the quarterfinals, Andy Roddick in the semifinals and Mark Philippoussis in the final.

Filed Under: Archives Tagged With: Andy Roddick, Feliciano Lopez, Grand Slam, Mardy Fish, Mark Philippoussis, Roger Federer, Roger Federer Book, Sjeng Schalken, US Open, Wimbledon

Federer Zips to Fourth Round; Youhzny Eliminated

January 30, 2008 by Tennis Grandstand

Written by Shelly C. Dimaculangan
Roger Federer continues to braise tennis world as he advances to the next round of the Australian Open, defeating Russian Mikhail Youhzny 6-3, 6-3, 7-6 (5) at Rod Laver Arena in Melbourne. It was almost a clear sweep by the Swiss number one, nevertheless Youhzny had attempted to snatch the third set as it reached tiebreak.
“I knew he can play one great game and he’s back in it (third set). That’s kind of what happened really,” told Federer. Although Youhzny had to check his back for treatment after the first set, he seemed to have recovered quickly. During the third set, coming from a 3-0 deficit, Youhzny forced to tiebreak. But Federer took no chance for the 25th seeded Russian to take advantage of it.
“I was already happy being up two sets to love and the break. It’s just important to get out of the tiebreaker,” Federer stated.
Last year, Youhzny staggered second rank Rafael Nadal in U.S. Open semi-finals and winning it in four sets. Federer recognized Youhzny’s improvement and so he didn’t become complacent at all when he faced the Russian contender.
Pounding away from the baseline, Federer was more aggressive to the net as he won 28 out of 35 approaches as compared to Youhzny’s 6 out of 18. Despite having more unforced errors than Youhzny, he had better executions in drop shots and stung his opponent with nifty forehands.
Both players clinched identical seven service aces, one of which was amazingly won by Federer after challenging the ruling through instant replay in the first set.
Federer’s next opponent will be Novak Djokovic of Serbia who, at the same day, won against Doha Asian Games champion Danai Udomchoke of Thailand. Federer had beaten Djokovic twice last year but still, he doesn’t want to underrate the Serbian.
“[It] seems like he is playing pretty good. It’s a dangerous match for me, that’s for sure,” said Federer.

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: Australian Open 2007, Roger Federer, Youhzny

Federer humiliates Björkman at AusOpen

January 30, 2008 by Manfred Wenas

Australian Open 2007 Roger Federer added another victim to his bodycount. This time the victim is Swede Jonas Björkman. With his display Fedex of power he managed to shove headlines such as the riots and the immense heat to the background.
Ofcourse the extreme circumstances of Tuesday was mentioned. The organisation of the Australian Open was forced to move matches to the evening. Larry Scott, CEO of the WTA, indicated that the agreements made about playing tennis under extreme weather circumstances required adjustments.
“The health of the players is top priority. I have been worried about the risks that were taken Tuesday.”
Federer agreed and said that the heat on the courts is unbelieveable and it’s not just the sun but also the heat that comes from under the courts. According to him it feels as if your feet are on fire.
Maybe that’s why, the weather was a little clouded en therefore lesser warm. Federer kept his second round match short against doubles specialist Jonas Björkman. Björkman was unable to take a set against the unstoppable Swiss. The endscore: 6-2, 6-3,6-2.
Federer’s next match is against Russian Mikhail Youzhny who beat Yen-Hsun Lu of Taipei in three sets 7-5,6-4,6-4.

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: Australian Open, Australian Open 2007, Jonas Bjorkman, Larry Scott, Roger Federer, WTA Tour News

Roger Federer is Great for Tennis – and Sports

January 30, 2008 by Alessandro Nicolo

Written by Alessandro Nicolo
Here’s the thing: tennis is one of those sports I play more than I watch. It’s just one of those things. There’s not enough time in a day for me to watch every sport. On the other hand if someone would pay me – trust me – I’m watching anything.
You’re reading the words of a guy who has watched curling on more than one occasion.
Tennis is a great game. The athletic demands are complimented by the technical aspects of mastering the sport. A few years ago my close friend, a former tennis player and instructor, told me that by the time he’s done Roger Federer may very well be the greatest tennis player who ever lived. I took those words seriously since my friend was not into hyperbole. More sober and sane than he they don’t come. “There no weaknesses in his game,” he said.
Well, Roger Federer won his 10th men’s singles grand slam title, winning in straight sets over a feisty Fernando Gonzalez at the Australian Open. That’s good for fifth all-time, which ties Federer with Bill Tilden. He’s two titles behind Ray Emerson and only one behind Bjorn Borg and Rod Laver.
More importantly, at 26 he is just four grand slam titles away the all-time leader Pete Sampras.
Wow.
Tennis has a problem on its hands. Through most of the sport’s history tennis was blessed with classic rivalries. Who can forget those battles in the 1970s and 1980s between Borg, McEnroe, Connors and Lendl? Sampras and Agassi had a thing going too. But who will dance with Roger?
Andy Roddick has the attitude and will to challenge him, but if his serve is off he struggles. Rafael Nadal has flair and is blessed with a more complete game but outside of clay he’s a mere mortal.
In modern tennis there is no one that comes remotely close to Roger Federer. His dominance is pure net – excuse the bad pun. What captivates me is how smooth and beautiful his game really is. He’s perfect in all aspects of the game without looking like a robot.
Let me take this a step further. Forget statistics. I’m dropping the gloves here. Forget Tiger Woods. Forget Babe Ruth, Pele, Michael Jordan and Wayne Gretzky. Forget Michael Schumacher and Mohammed Ali – to name a few.
Yeah, I may be getting excited here but I’m going with a sports junkie’s instinct here. People will always debate Montana or Unitas? Chamberlin or Jordan? Lemieux, Orr, Howe or Gretzky? Even Pele has legitimate challengers in Diego Maradona and Alfredo di Stefano. Some even swear that we wasn’t the greatest Brazilian player ever. For this they look to Garrincha.
For his part, Ali is sometimes not referred as the greatest heavyweight of all time. It’s notoriously hard to judge auto racing or cycling – though Eddie Merckx can easily plead his case as the greatest cyclist ever. Come to think of it, he Woods come as the closest challengers that I can think of. But even experts admit Tiger has some weaknesses to his game. I’ve yet ot hear that about Federer.
I know I’m mixing some team sports in there but you get the picture. Yes, tennis has had its fair share of dominant players. The consensus however has Rod Laver as the greatest and most complete player ever. Sampras has the numbers to back him up.
I recognize all that. Still…
There is a very real chance that when Federer retires he may close out his career as the most dominant professional athlete ever.
Just for that I’ll be watching. There may not be any parity in tennis (sometimes dynasties are just plain good) but Federer’s class and elegance may just enough for sports fans to forgive and forget.
Alessandro Nicolo – the hack with a knack – is a freelance writer and sedentary bon vivant living in Montreal.

Filed Under: Featured Columns Tagged With: Borg, Connors, Grandslam, Lendl, McEnroe, Pete Sampras, Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer

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