Roger Federer is still a formidable champion

Roger Federer

Superb comeback from the legend

Semi-finals at Melbourne. The quarterfinals at Roland Garros. Second round at Wimbledon. Fourth round at Flushing Meadows. Only one calendar title along with a nagging back problem. That pretty much sums up Roger Federer’s year on the court in 2013.

2013 was one of the worst seasons ever for the Swiss maestro. After picking up the back injury in February, everything went downhill for him. He failed to reach a Grand Slam final in a calendar year for the first time since 2002. He had his phenomenal nine-year Grand Slam quarterfinal streak broken by Sergiy Stakhovsky in the second round at Wimbledon, and he lost to three players outside the Top 50 last summer.

Federer’s experiment with a larger racquet in April failed too, and he hurt his back even more. This made him switch back to his regular racquet. All of these made for statistics that Roger Federer would definitely not be proud of. Predictably, these failures led to questions about his retirement. To many, the answers seemed quite evident.

Little did all his critics, both professional and amateur, know that in 2014, at the age of 33, Roger Federer would silence them all. It’s common knowledge that he has not won a Grand Slam this year, and I concede to that. However, with two ATP titles in his kitty, a Wimbledon final and an Australian Open semi-final to add to it, the question on everyone’s mind is – does he have it in him to win more?

2014 – An improved performance

At the beginning of the year, Federer decided to increase the size of his racquet head, which has definitely helped his game in 2014. He has been able to play his natural attacking form of tennis with ease again, which we all had become accustomed to over the years. Wimbledon 2014 was the perfect reason for all Federer fans to remain optimistic about the future. With his back problem bidding him adieu and after increasing the size of his racquet head, he is definitely back to win more.

Dropping only a set on his way to the final with scintillating shots, precise serves and sharp volleys, the pace at which he moved around the court reminded the world of what he is truly made of. And you really can’t get much closer than he did in the final. He could have become the first man to win Wimbledon after saving a match point in the final since 1948. He could have become the first man in history to own eight Wimbledon titles. But it was Novak Djokovic aka Djoker who had the last laugh.

In his post match interview Federer said that he’d be back next year, which was a surprise to some in the crowd, but why not? The way he has been playing, he could continue for another 2-3 years.

Do not write him off

Ladies and gentlemen, the Roger Federer era is not over. Having got his confidence back after last year’s slump, the Swiss will be looking to give it his all in this season’s last big showdown, the US Open, which is just over a month away. Federer will be looking to win his 18th Grand Slam title. The quick courts at Flushing Meadows are well suited to his style, and he will be looking to take full advantage of the conditions.

This year’s tournament in New York will probably have Novak Djokovic as the strongest contender to win the title. Along with him would be Rafael Nadal, who did not have a great Wimbledon, but being the defending champion, will definitely have a point to prove. Being just three Slams away from equalling Federer’s record, Nadal will surely have a lot of motivation to give it his all. Meanwhile, Andy Murray will also be looking to prove a point after having had quite a disappointing season so far.

Along with the top 3, there definitely are other contenders, like Milos Raonic, Grigor Dimitrov, Nick Kyrgios, Stan Wawrinka and the Frenchman, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, looking to make their mark on the big stage. So everyone can expect this year’s last Slam to be a fight to the finish, and you can positively count on Roger Federer to be one of the top contenders to lift the crown on September 8, 2014.