Sunday, July 5, 2009
A Dream To Play For Grand Slam Title
Either way, it's a big story. If Roger Federer wins Sunday's men's final at Wimbledon, he will become the all-time Grand Slam title holder, with 15, surpassing Pete Sampras. Arguably, he will become the greatest player of all time.
If Andy Roddick wins, it will be massive upset and official notification that the American still has some gas left in the tank. And, in combination with Serena Williams' win in Saturday's women's final, it makes a solid case for an American tennis renaissance.
Lots of questions arise ahead of this titanic men's tilt. Our writers try their best to provide answers.
Will Federer feel the pressure seeking a record 15th Grand Slam title?
Greg Garber: He hasn't so far, and with Rafael Nadal -- the man who beat him in last year's magnificent final -- back home in Mallorca, there are no worries. Federer said after winning at Roland Garros for the first time that the pressure he felt had lifted. Now, it seems, he was telling the truth. After losing a single set to Philipp Kohlschreiber, all Federer has done is win nine straight against Robin Soderling (the French Open finalist, who eliminated Rafa), ace machine Ivo Karlovic and the ageless Tommy Haas. Those matches averaged less than two hours. Pressure … what pressure?
Kamakshi Tandon: Yes, to an extent. He admitted that he felt tremendous pressure going for five Wimbledons in a row in the final two years ago, and it was clear how much pressure he felt trying to win the French Open final last month.
But that didn't stop him from winning on either of those occasions, and the pressure will probably be less this time around because this isn't his only chance to win a 15th. If anything, Roddick will probably feel more tight.
Ravi Ubha: No.
The pressure is very much off after Federer ended his French Open jinx, taking advantage of Rafael Nadal's early exit. He gets to play someone he's beaten 18 out of 20 times, so he'll be even more relaxed; versus guys like Roddick, Lleyton Hewitt and Nikolay Davydenko, Federer oozes confidence.
If Federer takes an early break lead, it'll be a routine three-setter.
What does Roddick need to do to win?
Garber: As Boris Becker told ESPN, "Roddick needs to do just what he did in the semifinal -- he has to leave it all out there." Precisely. Roddick, who used to just blast away from the baseline and ride his serve, has become a more complete player under coach Larry Stefanki. He has a pretty decent slice, and against Andy Murray in the semifinals he came to net an astounding 75 times -- and won 48 of those points. Some of those followed less-than-average approach shots, but Murray, playing nervous, couldn't pull off the passing shots. Roddick will have to choose his forward-moving moments with more care against Federer. Oh, and Roddick needs to serve like he did against Murray, who might return serve better than Federer.
Tandon: Everything right. Serve out of his mind, return more aggressively than he usually does, and find a bit of inspiration in the tiebreakers.
Ubha: Serve like he's never done before, for one. Roddick did it against Andy Murray in the semifinals, registering a first-serve percentage of 75. If the percentage falls under 70, that won't be enough -- Federer will take advantage of the second serve in a way Murray couldn't. Roddick also has to come to the net behind quality, rather than nothing. Approaches without pace or depth are no good.
Of course, Federer needs to have an off day, the kind he had in Miami last year.
Who will win?
Garber: The two men have played 20 times and Federer has won 18. The case would seem to be closed. "I don't know how much my great record I have against Roddick would come into play," Federer said. "I'm not sure. It starts from zero." Really? Roddick is admittedly thrilled to be in the final. He looked stunned after he beat Murray on Friday and actually fell to his knees on his way to the locker room. He has played Federer twice in this event, in 2004 and 2005, and lost six of seven sets, but competed extremely well. One gets the idea that, with No. 15 on the line for Federer, it will go the same way.
Federer, in four.
Tandon: Federer. The matchup is a bad one for Roddick, and it's tough to see how he can win three sets the way Federer has been playing. But heck, that's what I thought against Murray.
Ubha: Federer.
The stars lined up nicely for Federer when Nadal pulled out due to lingering knee trouble, and he got more good news when Murray -- who beat Federer in each of their past four meetings -- departed.
Federer has had a tough draw, so he won't be short of match sharpness, either. He looked mighty impressive in a straight-sets win over Tommy Haas in the semis, not conceding a break point.
Saturday, July 4, 2009
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
Federer opens with easy victory
Roger Federer got his bid for a sixth Wimbledon title off to a solid start with a straight-sets first-round win over Yen-Hsun Lu of Chinese Taipei.
The Swiss star opened proceedings on Centre Court in the absence of injured defending champion Rafael Nadal.
And despite dropping serve early on, the world number two came through 7-5 6-3 6-2 in one hour 44 minutes.
Fourth seed Novak Djokovic had a much tougher time against Julien Bennteau, winning 6-7 (8-10) 7-6 (7-1) 6-2 6-4.
Federer, who is trying to win a record 15th Grand Slam title, will play Guillermo Garcia-Lopez in round two.
With the disappointment of Nadal's withdrawal still fresh, it was down to second seed Federer to take on the job traditionally reserved for the defending men's champion and open play on Centre Court.
Roger Federer
Highlights - Federer breaks Lu to take opening set
It is not an unfamiliar role for the 27-year-old, who dominated at the All England Club with five successive titles from 2003 before his run ended in last year's dramatic five-set final against Nadal.
On his first return to the scene of that defeat, the newly-crowned French Open champion made a surprisingly edgy start, missing a couple of break-point chances in game four and then netting a forehand to slip a break down in game five.
There was little time for the world number 127 to enjoy his lead though, as Federer broke back immediately before taking the set in game 12, and breaking to love again for 2-0 in the second.
That proved enough to seal the second set for Federer and the Swiss eased through the third with two more breaks as his forehand in particular clicked into gear.
I'm very happy with my first round, I thought it was a very solid performance
Roger Federer
"It's very special and it will always remain that way," he said of being first up on Centre Court for the sixth successive year.
"It's a very privileged spot, Monday 1pm, so of course I feel honoured. I know that Rafa deserves it obviously more than I do this year but somebody had to do it, so I'm very happy that they chose me, of course. Gets your heart beating, that's for sure."
He added: "(Rafa) wouldn't have a problem handling it but it's still something he might obviously regret as well a little bit. That made his decision so difficult, I'm sure, as well."
Federer was pleased with his form having chosen to skip the warm-up event in Halle after his draining run to a first French Open title.
606: DEBATE
Will Federer win a sixth title?
"I actually didn't even think about it I didn't have a grass-court match yet this year," he said. "It's something I completely forgot about. I just felt good in practice the last few days.
"I had some good practice matches with Safin and Youzhny and Wawrinka. Some good quality players. I felt like I was in good shape for my first round. That's what I remembered, not if I did play a tournament or not before.
"But actually I'm very happy with my first round. I thought it was a very solid performance, because that's what it took today against Lu."
Djokovic came into the tournament saying he was not among the favourites despite being the third-highest ranked player in the draw.
Benneteau, the world number 81, made that prediction look pretty sound when he held his nerve in a tense opening tie-break, and the match remained desperately tight until Djokovic levelled by racing through a second tie-break.
Novak Djokovic
Highlights - Djokovic survives Benneteau test
The Serb dominated the third set before converting his third match point in the fourth, moments after a lengthy injury timeout when Benneteau slipped and twisted his knee.
The former Australian Open winner was pleased to to finish off his victory, saying: "I wasn't trying to think whether he was going to carry on or not, I was trying to focus myself on that point.
"For him to retire on match point would not be a great thing to do though, so I knew he was going to continue.
"Then it was quite tricky for me, but I thought I played the next points aggressively which was good."
Djokovic was pleased with the way he negotiated his opening match, adding: "I knew that I would have to work for most of the points throughout the match, because I was aware of the quality of my opponent today.
"I was really happy physically with the way I was handling things. And this is a big advantage in these big tournaments, in grand slams.
"When you play a best-of-five, it's really important to be physically fit and convincing and confident in yourself so you can rely on your strength throughout the matches.
"I think I was quite fresh, even though we played over three hours.
"It was certainly not a great draw for the first round, but I'm happy to get through."
