Federer Loses: Is this the end of an era?

[Steve Gardner]

Are we witnessing the demise of a sporting great? This is his second defeat in two matches, having been knocked out of the Australian Open last time out.

I wonder whether he still has enough in him to reach the magic 14 slams. I used to think he'd cruise past it, but it's looking like he might have to rely on Wimbledon and I'm not sure how long he can dominate that surface.

Well done to Murray. Do we finally have a potential champion?

Source: BBC

Superb Murray overcomes Federer


Britain's Andy Murray produced some glorious tennis to beat world number one Roger Federer in a three-set thriller at the Dubai Championship.

The unseeded Scot, 20, won 6-7 (6-8) 6-3 6-4 to dump the four-times champion out in the first round on Monday.

Murray wasted a set point in a close first set tie-break which Federer won.

But Murray, who did not face a break point throughout, hit back in stunning fashion with breaks in both the second and third sets to win in style.

The British number one recorded his second straight victory over the Swiss having defeated him in Cincinnati in August 2006, and now boasts a 2-1 head-to-head record.

The loss was also Federer's second in a row - the last time he played was the semi-final Australian Open defeat to eventual champion Novak Djokovic in January.

The 26-year-old had not lost a first round match since his defeat to Dominik Hrbaty in Cincinnati in August 2004, though he lost his opening match at last year's Pacific Life Open to Guillermo Canas after a bye into the second round.

Murray, who has faced recent criticism for pulling out of Britain's Davis Cup team, said he was delighted with the manner of his victory.

"Any time you get to play against someone like that it's just an honour to be on the same court," he said.

"But each time I've played him I've stepped my game up.

"It's tough to close it out against him but I served great and that was really the key.

"Playing against him, composure is the key. Sometimes he's going to play some unbelievable shots and you don't have a chance, so I just had to re-focus.

"I'd been serving well and I don't think he had a break point the whole match. I'm not sure how often that has happened to him."

Federer said afterwards that it was a tricky game for both him and Murray.

"One of the big guys had to go out. It's difficult but it could have been worse. It wasn't a bad match but that's the only positive I can take," he said.

"I thought I was missing forehands by two or three metres. That's awful. You have it lined up and suddenly it's out which comes as a shock."

Showing a significant improvement in his serve, Murray narrowly lost the fast-paced first set 8-6 on a tie break after spurning two set points.

But he clinically took the first break point in the second set to break Federer's serve in the sixth game with a brave forehand pass and went on to level the match and force the decider.

Murray then seized the initiative in the first game of the third set and was presented with an early chance after Federer made a backhand error to give him two break points.

But Federer, playing some sublime shots of his own, held serve and put Murray on the ropes in his next service game - though he could not force the break.

Staying calm amid some poor line calls which forced the umpire to overrule, Murray broke Federer in the fifth game of the third set before serving out for the win.

Murray's mum Judy believes her son has grown up and puts his victory down to him enjoying the sport once again.

"He's enjoying what he's doing, he's enjoying training and he's particularly buying into the physical side," she told BBC Radio 5 Live.

"You can see from the way he covered the court that he is very fast, he's looking really strong out there and he's getting much more power into his first serve.

"He's growing up, he's getting used to playing at the top level events and he knows what he's doing, knows what he wants and he believes in himself now."

After the match, Murray also mentioned the effects of a new aspect to his training regime - Bikram yoga.

"It's ugly. I started doing it in December. It's helped me a lot with my fitness and mental strength," he said.

Murray will now face Spain's Fernando Verdasco in the last 16.

[Steve Gardner]

teddy said:

I sincerely hope it's not the end of a great, because I always prefer to watch any player that has a single-handed back-hand and attacks the net. I think Roger is going through a bit of a slump in form - it's been win win win for the last few years but now there is Djokovic (spelling?) that I think will really push him on the hard courts. Federer will be back, but I feel he needs to get back to playing the way he was a couple of years ago where he was more incisive in his play - these days he seems too content to simply trade from the back of the court.

I hope you're right.

I like Federer and would really like to see him match or pass Sampras' 14 slam mark. Last year, I figured it was only a matter of time. But, with the likes of Nadal and Djokovic, both younger and improving - now matching and even beating Federer (who is surely past his peak), I'm not so sure. Particularly when you add the likes of Murray and even Baghdatis into the mix, both of whom are capable of upsetting Federer on their day.

I actually think that winning the French has become almost as important as winning another two slams. The number of commentators I hear talk about the fact Federer doesn't have the full set - implying he's not a complete all-rounder, like Agassi, for example - leads me to think his legacy will be questioned when he retires if he misses out on the French.

[Jack]

I also hope that it's not a end of a great. I would much rather Murray win the Wimbledon title than Federer although it's always a shame to watch greats pass. I hope he can try and keep up his form and keep going for a least another few years.

[Steve Gardner]

Well, this is looking like more than a blip to me. I might have been less shocked if Fish had won 7-6 7-6, but 6-3 6-2?!?!?! That's a pasting.

Federer's loss of form is surely going to be compounded by a loss of confidence. I fear for him this year. He could well struggle to pick up a slam.

Source and full article: BBC

Unseeded American Mardy Fish produced a stunning display to beat world number one Roger Federer in the semi-finals of the Pacific Life Open in Indian Wells.

World number 98 Fish served superbly and fired winners from everywhere as he raced to a 6-3 6-2 victory.

[Steve Gardner]

Surely even the most optimistic Federer fan must be worried now. Is this going to be a barren year for the great man?

Source and full article: BBC

Andy Roddick upset world number one Roger Federer with a 7-6 4-6 6-3 win in the Sony Ericsson Open quarter-finals.

It was only Roddick's second win in 17 career meetings against the Swiss star, his last coming in Montreal in 2003.

[Steve Gardner]

You could argue that Federer showed great fighting qualities to come back from 5-1 and 30-15 down in the deciding set.

But he really shouldn't have been in such a position against the world number 137.

Source and full article: BBC

World number one Roger Federer survived a huge scare against Spanish qualifier Ruben Ramirez Hidalgo to stumble into round three of the Monte Carlo Masters.

Spain's world number 137 Hidalgo looked to be on the verge of a shock win at 5-1 and 30-15 up in the deciding set.

But Federer, fresh from his Estoril Open success, won five straight games to force a tie-break, which he took to seal a 6-1 3-6 7-6 (7-1) victory.

[Steve Gardner]

Okay, so Federer was playing Nadal and the scoreline of 5-7 5-7 doesn't look too bad. However, it's the manner of the defeat that troubles me.

The first set was close all the way before Federer lost serving to save the set at 5-6 down. But when Federer went 4-0 up in the second, the last thing I expected to see was Nadal recover to lead 4-5.

Once Nadal was back on level terms, there was only going to be one winner.

So what's the verdict here? A 5-7 5-7 defeat to Nadal on clay is nothing to be ashamed of, but Fed's recent run coupled with the manner of his second set captiulation makes me wonder whether he's capable of picking up a major this year.

[Steve Gardner]

Another capitulation, this time in the first set, when leading 5-1!

Source: BBC

Rafael Nadal clinched his first Hamburg Masters title with an epic 7-5 6-7 (3-7) 6-3 win over the defending champion and top seed Roger Federer.

The world number two needed two hours and 52 minutes to beat the world number one in a gruelling and tense match.

He came back from 5-1 down to clinch the first set, while Federer also let an advantage slip in the second only to clinch the set in the tie-break.

Nadal broke twice in the third as he claimed the 26th title of his career.

[Steve Gardner]

Unless Nadal finds himself injured and unable to contest the French Open at some point in the next two or three years, Federer will find it impossible to win at Rolan Garros.

Whatever else he does, his legacy will be tarnished by his failure to win this slam event.

Pity.

Source and full article: BBC

Rafael Nadal thrashed world number one Roger Federer to win a fourth successive French Open title on Sunday.

The Spaniard, 22, won 6-1 6-3 6-0 in one hour 48 minutes to become the first man since Bjorn Borg in 1981 to win four Roland Garros titles in a row.

Federer had lost the previous two finals to Nadal, and was broken at the start of each set this time as he fell well below his best form.

Nadal becomes the seventh man to win a Grand Slam without dropping a set.

The last man to do so was Federer himself, at the Australian Open last year, but the aura of invincibility has well and truly left the Swiss now.

It was the heaviest defeat of Federer's career in Grand Slam tournaments and suggested he is as far as ever from fulfilling his dream of winning all four major titles.

[Steve Gardner]

I seem to be talking to myself about Federer's demise.

Great match - truly amazing. Given Federer's form this year, coupled with his humiliation at the French, I was expecting a straight sets victory for Nadal. With the score at 6-4 6-4 6-6, I figured Federer would be a broken man. But he proved me wrong.

On balance, I think Nadal played the better tennis but a couple of things surprised me. Why, for example, does Federer insists on trading blows with Nadal from the baseline? He only wins around 40% of their baseline exchanges yet wins around 60% at the net. And why were both players doing everything possible to take each shot on their forehand?

Source: ATP Tennis

Nadal's fifth career Grand Slam title (5-2) gives him the most among Spaniards, surpassing Santana (4). Other than Federer in 2004, ‘06-07, Nadal is the first player to win two of the first three Grand Slam titles in a season since Pete Sampras won the Australian Open and Wimbledon in 1997.

The 22-year-old held two of four championship points in the fourth set tie-break at 7-6 and 8-7, but Federer fought back to within sight of winning a sixth successive Wimbledon singles crown. The Swiss shares the record of five straight triumphs with Englishman Laurie Doherty (1902-06) and Borg (1976-1980).

"Federer is a great champion," said Nadal. "His attitude always is positive when he loses or when he wins. I always have a lot of respect for him. I admire him a lot. We have a very good relationship."

Federer had been trying to become the first player since 1927 to come back from a two-set deficit in the Wimbledon final and win. That year Henri Cochet defeated French compatriot Jean Borotra 4-6, 4-6, 6-3, 6-4, 7-5. Federer was attempting to come back from a two-set deficit and win for the fourth time in his career.

“[It is] probably my hardest loss, by far,” said Federer. “I thought I played well. [But I] missed too many chances obviously in the first couple of sets. Rafa played well. I'm happy we lived up to the expectations. I'm happy the way I fought. That's all I could really do.”

The last male to have saved match points and won a Wimbledon singles final was American Bob Falkenburg, who saved two match points against John Bromwich of Australia in 1948.

Nadal now holds a 12-6 career lead (9-1 on clay, 2-3 on hard, 1-2 on grass) against Federer. It was their 14th overall meeting in a final (Nadal leads 10-4). This was the sixth career meeting in a Grand Slam final between the two superstars (Nadal leads 4-2), which is the most in the Open Era.

Nadal improved his match winning streak to 24 in a row since his last loss to compatriot and former World No. 1 Juan Carlos Ferrero in the opening round at Masters Series Rome on May 7. It is also Nadal's fourth straight title (Masters Series Hamburg, Roland Garros, Queen's, Wimbledon) and an ATP-best sixth title of the year.

Federer's all-time record 65-match winning streak on grass, including 40 in a row at Wimbledon, comes to an end (since his last loss to Croatian Mario Ancic in the first round at Wimbledon six years ago). Federer's unbeaten streak in 10 career grass court finals also ends.

Since Roland Garros in 2005 when Nadal captured his first Grand Slam crown, 13 of the last 14 Grand Slam titles have been won by Federer (8) or Nadal (5). The lone exception came at the Australian Open in January when Novak Djokovic broke through to win his first Slam title.

The 2008 Wimbledon final was the third time in the Open Era that the same two players had met in the championship of a Grand Slam tournament for three consecutive years. The others were Federer and Nadal at Roland Garros (2006-08) and from 1988-90 at Wimbledon where Sweden’s Stefan Edberg defeated Boris Becker of Germany in two of the three years.

[Jack]

What a game it was yesterday. It was amazing, Nadal so close so many times and Federer fighting and getting it back. In the end though I think Nadal deserved to win it even if my favourite was Federer.

It was so close right until the end, the longest final ever at Wimbledon and was a nail biting experience. I was happy for Nadal however I didn't think that it was right when he got a spanish flag out. Have you ever seen someone at wimbledon get a flag out to celebrate?