Roger Federer said recently that 2009 was his most emotional season but not, technically, his best. He’s right, of course, this year he won “only” 4 titles and had the worst win-loss record of any of the 5 years he’s finished at the top (61-12 as opposed to say, 2006, when he finished the season with a ridiculous 92-5 record – check out the chart here.) But two of those 4 titles were biggies – his first French Open and his record-breaking major at Wimbledon. So I thought I’d finish the year by looking back at Federer’s “emotional season” – which was pretty (melo)dramatic for his fans, too. We should savor it now that we’ve survived it!
Roger has never had a problem sharing his emotions. He’s come a long way since winning his first Major, but some things haven’t changed.
2003:
2009:
Roger doesn’t mind letting the tears flow. He cries when he wins Majors, during in-flight movies, and whenever he sees Rod Laver. But this season really was different. There were sobs of despair before there were any tears of joy. Who could forget the infamous “God, it’s killing me!” moment during the Australian Open trophy ceremony? I bet the the grounds crew just finished drying the courts:
Fed tried to explain himself after the match:
“In the first moment (of a loss) you’re disappointed, you’re shocked, you’re sad, you know, then all of a sudden it overwhelms you. The problem is you can’t go in the locker room and just take it easy and take a cold shower. You can’t. You know, you’re stuck out there. It’s the worst feeling, you know.”
Boy, do we know, Roger! Proceed at your own risk, Fedophiles:
Yes, it was rough. But we must credit the ATP’s top Fedophile, Rafael Nadal, for doing his best to cushion the blow. (I guess he could have tried losing the match, but Rafa does have his principles – and Uncle Toni – to contend with.) Federer fans may have found the match and the trophy ceremony excruciating, but it also gave us tender moments like this one:
Nadal defended Roger after the match:
“Of course it can happen to all of us. It was an emotional moment, and I think this also lifts up sport, to see a great champion like Federer expressing his emotions. It shows his human side. But in these moments, when you see a rival, who is also a comrade, feeling like this, you enjoy the victory a little bit less.”
So eloquent, Rafa! And it gets better. Even months later, Nadal admitted to feeling torn up over Roger’s loss:
When I beat Roger Federer in January, in Melbourne, in the final of the Australian Open, I felt an animal excitement. But afterwards, I felt an indescribable emptiness and a loneliness. As if I had no more aim/no more purpose. To me, Federer is still the number 1 in the world. I want to meet him again on court. I know he can beat me.
The Australian Open haunted the rest of us Fedophiles, too. Some of us even felt betrayed. How could Roger have let us down? Losing 2-6 in the fifth set, when Rafa was obviously tired from his epic semifinal? And on hardcourts? At a tournament Federer had won three times? Against the guy who stole his precious Wimbledon trophy?
Sensing at the time that we were in for more heartache, I offered this advice:
We Fed Fans are not a hearty lot. Let’s face it, one of the main reasons we love Roger is that he’s supposed to be invincible. If we enjoyed riding tsunamis of hope and despair, we’d waste our time cheering for the Cubs or Marat Safin. But now that we’ve been smooth sailing with our guy for so long, it just doesn’t seem right to jump yacht as soon as we hit a rough patch.
Federer fans, it’s time to pop the Dramamine.
And boy, did we need some serious sedation that Spring! Stay tuned for Part 2: Childish Ways
Tags: ATP, Australian Open, Federer, Fedophile, Nadal, tennis
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I still can’t watch that trophy ceremony again. In fact, I have a hard time watching any of the Slam trophy ceremonies where Roger has lost. I just remember walking around that entire day, sleep deprived and on the verge of my own tearful meltdown. Who knew that in a few months, the tears would be such joyful ones. My schedule didn’t allow me to watch the French Open as it happened so when I got home and saw the score on the ESPN crawl, I fell to my knees and burst into tears. So glad my family was not around or I would be writing from a loony bin.
Thanks for the memories, and for keeping Roger ever present…
you said it, ff.
oh, i didn’t want to get out of bed that week.
i must say i cant help but admiring Rafa for the way he handled the situation, the compassion he showed. but for Fed’s legacy’s sake, he better even the score with Nadal should they meet again during slams (and also on the “little” tournaments). i sure hope the FEDAL wars have another unwritten chapter or two. in fact i hope we will get to see a rematch in this upcoming AO open.
and Feddy – grow up for fuck sake, you are a BETTER player than Nadal and it’s time you get a hold of your nerves when facing him and kick his fat spanish ass.
I’ll never forget the days after the loss in AO. On Roger’s website, discussions about whether Roger was a bad loser and had spoiled Nadal’s day, people attacking him for not being able to hold it together and others like me (find men who cry so much better than men who hit, swear, cuss, and become violent)defending him. Every athlete and team that ever had a crying fit in public got mentioned as evidence that, yes, men do cry (sometimes), while others saw Roger’s reputation damaged, especially in the ’stiff-upper-lip’ Anglo-American-Austalian world.
Please, please, please Roger – let us have less drama and more smooth sailing next year!
i thought that AO ceremony was actually quite a beautiful moment in a world of testosterone, ego filled male aggressive sport battles. roger said in a recent intvw. that what was killing him was the fact that he didn’t want people feeling sorry for him annd it was rafa’s moment not his. he said he’s been crying win or lose since age 5. i’m hoping fed wins 2 more wimbys to pass pete, gold in 2012 and davis cup. i’d also like him to beat murray, del po, nole, rafa more often than not. i think we will see rog take his beautiful tennis to new levels over the next 5 years. i’m gonna keep my tissue box close.
thnx again ff.
FedFan,
nice words. your optimism about Fed in the next 5 years surprises me. i also wish Roger will be consistent when facing top 5 players, but i also think his weakening is inevitable, after so many years at the top, he’s not getting any younger. also now that he has a family tennis is not a top priority, i doubt if we’re gonna see him win 10-12 title a season again.
but all rational arguemants aside – i really hope i’m wrong and that Fed’s passion for the game will make him wanna work hard and stay focused and thus stay on top of everyone else.
hi feddybear,
i think ur right, rog may only win 1-3 titles a year. i’m hoping they’re big ones. i believe he has the talent and physical/mental strength to keep winning slams. i’m looking forward to the ups and downs of the king of tennis.
btw….thnx mr. ff for the nu banner.
sorry, i ment lorrie, of course.
hey i know what would help mr. ff……..a banner of 15 fed GS trophy moments…….only a happy thought.
Oh man, I couldn’t watch that again, even for the tender Fedal moments. I walked around in a blue funk for a long time after that one.
But Rafa and Roger together is a wonderful thing. I think we are so lucky to have a rivalry that includes such respect and emotion for each other.
“and whenever he sees Rod Laver”
lmao, i can just imagine roger and rod laver having dinner together, with roger randomly bursting into tears, saying, “i’m sorry, rod, but you’re just too fabulous. ;_; *sobs some more*”
“I want to meet him again on court. I know he can beat me.”
i appreciate nadal being so nice and sympathetic, unlike a lot of his extremely vocal fans :/, but when he says things like that, i’m just puzzled. i don’t know, it just sounds odd. like he’s the older brother and fed’s the younger brother, and nadal, as the older brother, always beats him at something, which upsets the younger brother, so the older brother encourages him, and when the younger brother finally beats him, the older brother is genuinely happy for him. or something? haha, i don’t know, i’m kind of braindead at the moment (it’s the end of the semester :p).
i watched it again, at my own risk… when i saw it on tv live i had tears, seeing fed cry, mirka’s face and rafa’s grace. i understood he must have been so disappointed to lose the 5th in such a one-sided manner, another win for his rival, to have lost FO so badly, then his beloved wimby and #1, as rafa was too good. he might not have been thinking about it all, but huge disappointment. he didn’t seem relaxed and present during AO final on one of his best surfaces, plus the weight of expectation, trying to equal the record, maybe thinking about the twins, all this probably didn’t help. neither did a relentless nadal.
still, looking back and seeing it again, i am more struck by this brilliant moment in tennis history, when two champions showed such great mutual admiration and respect, especially rafa. long live roger and rafa, ATP BFFs!
we know they enjoy playing each other in big matches, but i imagine the ultimate for them is when they are both playing their best, like wimby ‘08.
i totally blame rod laver, the legends and the guy who yelled, ‘i love you federer!’ one day when he’s retired, rog will be handing the wimby trophy to some new star on tour and that kid will be overcome with emotion, being congratulated by GOAT! it will be their dream come true.
i recently read an article about how it’s not so much about fed’s game diminishing or him having less mental and physical strength with age, as it is that the guys are getting younger, bigger, stronger and fearless. being around him more, they are no longer in awe, they know they have a shot. equipment is also improving all the time, while fed is likely using essentially the same racquet he’s had for years, with the smallest frame size on tour, which leaves little room for error, but when he’s on, his strokes are still lethal.
his record might not have been as dominant, but he still kicked GS ass and continued his consecutive semis or better streak. in 2010, when he’s not playing his best, he needs to remember he has 15 and career GS and is #1. my hope is rog and rafa will face off again in GS and make it another year to remember. rog should improve HTH vs rafa and the young guns. as fed fans, we should remember we survived, lived through history, rejoiced and the rest is icing on the cake! plus ff keeps us sane!
i disagree on 2 things:
1. don’t think Fed played his best on Wimby 08, even though he was pretty close.
2. i think Fed’s level of play has indeed diminished, regardless of the gifted bunch of players around him at the top 10.
other than that – good stuff.
perhaps for wimby ‘08, more specifically, it was the highest level that both have played each other at, over a long period of time in a GS final, with so much at stake. shot making was incredible, the drama, the rain delays, you really didn’t know what was going to happen. i remember fed digging deep to even it at 2 sets all and saving match points too. had fed been at his best the whole time, perhaps he would have won and not let 2 sets slip away. though overall, i feel like instead of fed losing that one, nadal won it. either way, an exceptional match!
fed has been more error prone, particularly with the forehand and his serve at times. his backhand seems to have improved. he’s not as consistent and ruthless as in the past. i think he plays and moves remarkably well given his long career. he’s shown great resiliency and fight and earned his GSs and #1. he lifted the game to new heights and players improved to meet that standard, so perhaps he needs to do something extra special to raise the level again.
i’d love to see how 2010 goes with everyone, esp nadal healthy and playing well.
i agree about Wimby 08 final – it was a hell of a match – in terms of drama and excitement – probably the best i’ve seen (i lost like 3 kilos of sweat that night), and Rafa has definitely earned his crown. though the level of tennis was high, i actually think it wasn’t as high as in the previous year, final of 07, where the ratio of winner / erros was something like 3:1 or 4:1 for both players combined.
about Fed’s level of play – i agree with you that he’s playing really well given the amount of time he spent on court last 5-6 years. his decline is very natural. i still think when he’s at his best, physically and mentally, no one can touch him, like we saw this year in Madrid and Cincy, and large parts of USO and AO. hope next year he will be slightly more consistent and determined and make us all very happpppppyyyyyyyyy
I’ve been a long-time lurker on this site as it’s a very pleasant place where posters show a lot of respect to each other (quite in contrary to most tennis sites, where more often than not, the mutual bashing reaches ‘uncalled for’ levels!), but this post really prompted me to leave a big ‘THANK YOU!’ for this lovely post, freakyfrites.
I so much agree. However strange it may sound, the AO trophy ceremony turned out to be my personal highlight of 2010.
I felt truly gutted for Roger’s loss, but at the same time, Rafa’s kind words and lovely hug managed to heal my pains for about 99%
(and of course, Rafa truly deserved his victory, like Roger said). And oh wow, Rafa’s words, “You will improve the 14 of Sampras for sure”, turned out to be a prophecy coming true much faster than most of us would have ever expected – immediately thereafter at RG and Wimbly! Apparently it was sort-of meant to happen after this AO-final catharsis for Roger.
A massive Fedal fan, I have followed both men’s careers from the early start, and I feel truly blessed to have been able to watch their ‘Friendly Rivalry’ become a legendary one. May their reign last as long as possible. Two fantastic tennis players, and even more, two fantastic young, classy gentlemen. I so hope the two of them will be able to continue sharing the main titles between the two of them, at least for 2010. I hope that’s not too much to hope for.
Cheers, K.
Hi ClayBuster!
So happy you liked the post (and that you came out of lurking!) I agree, it’s been so much fun watching this “Friendly Rivalry” unfold. It’s a rare, special thing and we should appreciate it whenever we can! Like you, I really really hope they’re both healthy and on form next season – so we can watch more finals!
Thanks for the welcome, ff!
Yeah, I think a lot of folks don’t know how truly precious this Friendly Rivalry indeed it. It’s unseen of before in the entire history of tennis (and I’m an oldie, have watched tennis for over 38 years, witnessed Connors-McEnroe-Borg in their heighdays…), such utter domination from both Roger and Rafa, and yet at the same time, such respect and friendliness. Five years occupying the #1 and #2 spots (okay, with a tiny blip from Rafa this year, which lasted no more than two weeks if I remember correctly) – unheared of before, and I doubt it will ever happen again.
Hope they will be able to come back at full strenght in 2010, the both of them.
btw, the atp has an article on the players of the year.
http://www.atpworldtour.com/News/Tennis/2009/12/Players-Of-The-Year.aspx
fed tops the list. forgot he had a great match win streak from madrid to wimby and incredibly won FO and wimby back to back. absolute props to handsome haas for having a great season despite all he has gone through in his career. i loved seeing the ‘old guys’ like haas, hewitt, safin, roddick and fed mixing it up with the young guys this year.
i do think the list should have included kolya, who finished well in shanghai and london after coming back from injury, finishing the year with wins over the current GS title holders- nadal, fed and del po. nadal should be on the list, even if his season was not up to the usual high standards. he won the aussie in epic fashion and won masters events in indian wells, monte carlo and rome. he dominated the clay court season, that is, until fed and le sod stepped in! nadal also had some fantastic matches and wins vs nole. plus he won important davis cup matches for spain, which helped them win.
Oh boy. I know that the moment with Fed and Rafa was a ‘great’ moment. But I cannot watch that match/trophy ceremony ever. It’s like Wimbledon 08 all over again.Heartbreaking.
On another note, I love the banner. It’s lovely.
this will make some of you feel better after the AO and USO fed losses! GOAT!
rick reilly essay
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=24Ny7hWppws
atp 15 tribute
http://www.atpworldtour.com/Tennis/Media/Videos/2009/06/Federer-15-Slams-Tribute.aspx
here’s a refresher on fed’s GS stats versus the all time greats. it makes me happy and hopeful for the future that rog will add to his already amazing GS total!
http://www.atpworldtour.com/News/DEUCE-Tennis/Federer-15-Quest/Slams-Stats.aspx
pete is a legend, but rog broke the record at a much faster pace than pete and at a younger age. if fed stays healthy, keeps his complete game and serve strong and with all his GS experience, he should still be the one to beat at the majors. it would be sweet if he won more GS beating nadal, nole, murray and del po along the way.
Roger Federer .Grand Slam Champion 15
3 Titles Australian Open
1 Titles Roland Garros
6 Titles Wimbledon
5 Titles US Open
Career Grand Slam Complete
21 Grand Slam Finals 1st
237 Consecutive Weeks as 1st .22 Straight Grand Slam Semi-Finals 1st
Claybuster, I love your very fair comments at RF.com and I agree,the Fed Nadal rivalry is just wonderful for anyone who had to endure the Connors Mac Lendl years.
That AO ceremony was a wonderful moment in tennis when two rivals behaved in such a classy way. It would have been unthinkable in the past. It was a privilege to be there. And yes, the adoration from the crowd is what set Roger off, that and later, when he tried to thank the “legends”.
I found it utterly disgusting the way Nadal was almost made to feel guilty for beating Roger Federer. It’s a sport, you win, you lose. I felt more sorry for Nadal, it was meant to be a day when he finally won a Slam on his least favorite surface and yet he was made to feel as if he’d killed someone by the AO crowd and so-called “tennis fans”. Credit to him handling it with such grace, but to see him admit it felt empty is really wrong. That’s what happens, when you’re more of a fan of one person than the sport in general.