Wimbledon 2014: Realisations of a Roger Federer fan

Roger Federer waves to the fans as he holds the runner-up trophy at Wimbledon

Awestruck by Roger

There are a lot of things I have had the chance to reflect back on, as I watched Roger Federer go toe-to-toe – and I mean that literally – with Novak Djokovic at the Wimbledon final.

In all these years of me being his fan, I never really thought much about ‘why him’ and ‘why-not-someone-else’. I always took it as something meant to be, something that had to happen and which did, nearly eight years ago when I chanced upon his match against Mikhail Youzhny in a tournament whose name now evades me.

I was awestruck by his game then, realising that I would never be able to get over it. It slowly evolved into a love that was stronger than my adoration for the entire Indian cricket team of the 90s put together. I have never been able to describe or qualify this feeling of ‘love’, and over the course of years trying to explain it has only become more difficult.

It was about the way he moved on the court effortlessly, the agility and the lethality that he sprung upon his opponents when they least expected it, and the seeming simplicity of it all that made the heart relive these moments over and over again.

In touch with present times

These past few years have been different and difficult though. There are no straightforward victories any more. Optimism wars with reality very often as he slips and slides, not just on the court, but also out of tournaments. Unknown names besting him have become common and his on court stature definitely isn’t as intimidating as it once was.

Yet, my heart skips a beat when he takes to the court; each time and every time, without fail. This year at Wimbledon, with each match he won, hopes rose, as did the confidence that he would do it this time. His tough rivals falling along the way added to the joy, until just one remained in that last one match.

All throughout the match, the mind asked questions and the heart answered them all, till the fourth set when he fell so behind that it looked like the journey would end brutally right there. But the clawing back and the equalising to take the match into the deciding set were so spectacular that victory seemed within reach once again.

In those few minutes where Federer managed to hang on in the fourth set, I realised that I may have fallen in awe and love only with his game all those years ago. But now, it’s his passion and commitment – in crunch situations like yesterday’s final – that hold me just as captivated.

Federer is not in a rut as much as many in the world love to proclaim. He is not fading away and he’s absolutely not passé as far as men’s tennis is concerned.

The magical skill has been replaced with undying commitment

Granted, Federer may not always be able to make those awesome, jaw-dropping passing shots from around the net any more. He shanks as many forehands as he hits winners off them. His ability to return well is getting rustier with each passing match. But what Federer still has in spades is the desire and the will-power to keep himself in the hunt for as long as he can hold on, despite his relative seniority in terms of age with his rivals. And he still possesses the ability move on when the match doesn’t go in his favour, making light-hearted remarks about it.

A few years ago, a loss like this would have made him completely lose his hold over his emotions. Unlike that historic final in 2008, where he looked heartbroken after losing the deciding set, this time around, his defeat was marked by a certain sense of contentment that showed in his emotions after the match, as if indicating the changing times and the changing circumstances.

And I, his fan, couldn’t have asked for more from my idol despite these trying times. To give it his all and to make the comeback, only to go down fighting with the head held high – he didn’t let anyone down there. In the end, it didn’t matter that he didn’t win his eighth or 18th, just the way it doesn’t matter that he’s now gone two years without winning a Major.

It’s no longer about wanting idealistic perfection, but about accepting the realistic ones hidden within the more seemingly obvious imperfections. To focus on the present status quo with its innumerable fallacies without relying on the past, and to look forward to the future with renewed hope – these have been the most important realisations that I have had about Roger Federer in this past fortnight, at Wimbledon.

Realisations, that have not only made me respect him all the more, but have also put me in awe of him, all over again.