The talented Roger Federer. Review on Roger Federer

Roger Federeris the most talented player on the men’s professional tennis circuit (ATP). With 10 Grand Slam titles under his belt at the age of 25, Federer is considered by many to be the player who will win all the 4 Grand Slams and will beat Sampras’ record of 14 Grand Slam titles. The most striking feature of Federer’s game is the graceful execution of shots coupled with precision. His single handed backhand shot is the stuff legends are made of. Add to that his ice-cool temperament & you have a guy who has the world at his feet.

Analysing Federer’s game, his serve is superb. Even at 20/25 KPH slower than Roddick, his service is more punishing. His forehands and placements of the balls at absurd angles frustrate opponents & delight his fans. His single-handed backhand is a sight straight out of dreams. To top it all, his anticipation is unsurpassed. He almost knows where the opponent will hit the ball before the opponent himself knows it.

Born in Basel, Switzerland on 8/8/1981, Federer has won 48 professional titles, 500+ matches & more than $30 m in career earnings. The four time Wimbledon winner who has a perfume named after him has many records to his credit:

1. One of only four players to have won junior & men’s title at Wimbledon. The others are Bjorn Borg, Stefan Edberg & Pat Cash.

2. Federer is the first player since Bjorn Borgin 1979 to win consecutive tournaments on three different surfaces, having captured titles at Wimbledon (grass), Gstaad (clay) and Toronto (hard) in 2004.

1. Federer became the 10th different player in the Open Era to win at least 10 singles titles in a season. He is the only one to do so without losing in a final. He won 11 titles in 2004 without losing a final.

   
   




2. Federer’s victory in the 2004 US Open made him the only player in the Open era to win his first four Grand Slam finals. He also became the first player since Mats Wilanderin 1988 to win 3 Grand Slam titles in the same year.

   
   




3. Federer is the first player since Ivan Lendlin 1986-87 to win back-to-back Masters titles without losing a match in 2003-04.

   
   




4. Federer holds 3 winning streaks of 20+ matches, 23 matches in 2004 ended by Dominik Hrbaty, 26 matches in 2004/05 ended by Marat Safin& 25 matches in 2005 ended by Richard Gasquet. He has a record 24 consecutive wins against top ten ranked opponents.

   
   




5. Federer holds the record for most consecutive wins in ATP tournament finals with 23 consecutive wins in finals, since a loss to Jiri Novak in the 2003 Gstaad title match. Trailing him with 12 consecutive wins each are Bjorn Borg & John McEnroe.

   
   

Roger Federer’s Grand Slam titles:

1. Wimbledon 2003.

   
   




2. Australian Open 2004.

   
   




3. Wimbledon 2004.

   
   




4. US Open 2004.

   
   




5. Wimbledon 2005.

   
   




6. US Open 2005.

   
   




7. Australian Open 2006.

   
   




8. Wimbledon 2006.

   
   




9. US Open 2006.

   
   




10. Australian Open 2007.

    
    




11. Wimbledon 2007.

    
    




12. US Open 2007.

    
    




13. US Open 2008.

    
    




14. Roland Garros 2009.

    
    




15. Wimbledon 2009.

    
    




16. Australian Open 2010.

    
    

Roger Federer’s most famous matches.

1. Wimbledon 2001 4th Round: defeated Pete Sampras, 7-6 (7), 5-7, 6-4, 6-7 (2), 7-5. Federer ended Sampras’s 31-match winning streak at All England Club with a dramatic five-set victory on Centre Court.

   
   




2. U.S. Open 2004 Final: defeated Lleyton Hewitt, 6-0, 7-6 (3), 6-0. No player had lost two sets at love in the Open final in 120 years.

   
   




3. Tennis Masters Cup 2004 Semifinal: defeated Marat Safin, 6-3, 7-6 ( 20-18). The second set tiebreak lasted 26 minutes.

   
   




4. Aus Open 2005 Semifinal: defeated by Marat Safin7-5, 4-6, 7-5, 6-7(6), 7-9 in a match that lasted 268 minutes.

   
   




5. Miami Masters 2005 Final: defeated Rafael Nadal2-6, 6-7(4), 7-6(5), 6-3, 6-1. This victory was only the second time that Federer had come back from two-sets down to win a match.

   
   

The highly talented Federer gets a thumbs up from his opponents who acknowledge his mastery. Roger Federer in the words of his opponents:

Federer beat Sampras 7-6, 5-7, 6-4, 6-7, 7-5 in 2001 Wimbledon 4th Round.

Sampras was gunning for his fifth consecutive & eighth overall Wimbledon title. Pete Samprassaid: ’’There are a lot of young guys coming up but Roger is a bit extra-special. He has a great all-round game, like me doesn’t get too emotional and you have to give him a great deal of credit.’’

Federer beat Roddick 7-6 (6), 6-3, 6-3 in 2003 Wimbledon Semi-Final.

Andy Roddicksaid: ’’I don’t know if there’s anybody out there more talented. He’s a great athlete, there’s not much he doesn’t have. Now it seems like he’s putting it together upstairs.’’

Federer beat Roddick 7-6 (2), 6-2 in 2003 Tennis Masters Cup Semi-Final.

Andy Roddicksaid: ’’The guy has more natural flair and talent for the game than most -- I mean, than anybody really.’’

Federer beat Agassi 6-3, 6-0, 6-4 in 2003 Tennis Masters Cup Final.

Andre Agassisaid: ’’He’s doing everything great. He’s a great mover, a great striker of the ball off both sides. He’s a factor from the back of the court and when he comes to the net. His serve is very effective. He knows the game real well, knows court position.’’

Federer beat Safin 7-6 (3), 6-4, 6-2 in 2004 Australian Open Final.

Marat Safinsaid: ’’It’s not like I played against a yo-yo, a guy who doesn’t know how to play tennis. You know what I mean? Let’s give him some credit. He is a big player. He’s number one in the world, sorry to tell you.’’

After 15 years on the professional Tour, Goran Ivanisevic retired from tennis after Wimbledon 2004.

Goran Ivanisevicsaid: ’’I played with all the generations, McEnroe, Connors, Pete, Andre and these young guys, but I still think that Federer is the biggest talent from all the players I ever played in my career. I don’t know if he is going to win as many Grand Slams as Pete, but definitely he’s the most talented I ever played. Some things he does better than Pete. On court he’s like a magician. Pete was destroying. When you play Pete you couldn’t touch his serve. But Federer, when he plays you think tennis is a very easy sport, but it’s not.’’

Federer beat Roddick 4-6, 7-5, 7-6 (3), 6-4 in 2004 Wimbledon Final.

Andy Roddicksaid: ’’Roger played too good, I threw the kitchen sink at him but he went to the bathroom and got a tub.’’

A Parting Shot. ’’His game is so easy on the eyes -- his shotmaking can be unbelievable, his movement so fluid -- that many of us would pay to watch him hit against a wall.’’

All said & done, Roger Federerhas the potential to be the greatest tennis player in the history of the game. And that statement will be proved in due course of time.