Roger Federer: Review of 2018 Season and Predictions for 2019

Roger Federer, the most-loved tennis player of this generation, had a good 2018 ATP season, if not a spectacular one. With his campaign for the season coming to an end with a straight-set loss to Alexander Zverev at the semifinals of year-end World Tour Finals, it’s an ideal time to look back at Roger’s 2018 season and looking ahead at 2019 which could very well be his last.

The year began with a bang for the Swiss Maestro at the Australian Open, where he successfully defended his title, defeating Marin Cilic in five sets. He then took a decision to play at the Rotterdam Open in pursuit of the world number 1 ranking. This decision paid rich dividends and he won the title to become the oldest player ever to reach the summit.

However, he could not replicate his sunshine double feat from the previous year. He lost the final of Indian Wells Masters in three tight sets to Juan Martin del Potro and then shockingly lost his first round match to the unheralded Australian Thanasi Kokkinakis.

There was some speculation as to whether he would skip the clay court all-together or play some select tournaments, including the French Open. He took his time to take a call, but eventually decided in favour of the former, to keep himself fresh for the grass and hard-court seasons that follow.

He began the grass-court season well by winning his third title of the season at Stuttgart Open, where he defeated Milos Raonic in the final. But his Wimbledon preparation got a hit when he lost to Borna Coric in the Halle Open semi-final.

Day Nine: The Championships - Wimbledon 2018

He entered the Wimbledon championships as the defending Champion. He looked in prime form as he reached the quarter-final stage without losing a single set. He won his first two sets against Kevin Anderson and looked well on course for yet another straight sets victory. But then, the South African staged a remarkable comeback and upstaged Federer in a five-set epic, where the fifth set itself consisted of 24 games!

After a not-so-successful grass court season, Federer’s hard court season too did not get off to a great start. He skipped the Canadian Open and reached the Cincinnati Open Final, where he lost to a rampaging Novak Djokovic in straight sets.

Further disappointment awaited him at the US Open, where he failed to reach the quarter-final stage for only the second time in his past 14 appearances, as he shockingly lost to Australian journeyman John Millman in the fourth round.

However, he put behind the disappointment and successfully organized the second edition of Laver Cup in Chicago. He managed to rope in top players, including Novak Djokovic and Alexander Zverev for the event. Like its inaugural edition, it was a great success for Federer, the organiser as well as Federer, the player who won both his singles matches against John Isner and Nick Kyrgios.

At the Shanghai Masters, he was the defending Champion. But he could not reach the final this time around as he lost to Coric for the second time this year, this time in the semi-final in straight sets.

He entered into his home tournament, the Swiss Indoors at Basel as a sentimental favourite. This time though, he did not disappoint the home crowd or millions of his fans worldwide, as he clinched his fourth title of the season and the 99th career title, overall.

Nitto ATP Finals - Day Seven

He brought that confidence into the Paris Masters and looked sharp even in his semi-final defeat to Djokovic where he gave the top seed a mighty scare, before losing in the third set tie-break.

At the year-end World Tour Finals in London, he showed glimpses of his old brilliance, especially in his match against Kevin Anderson. He made his fifteenth semi-final appearance at the event, but his quest for a record-extending seventh title there and a hundredth career title remained elusive as his season was ended in a straight-set defeat to Alexander Zverev.

Federer’s 2018 season may not have been as spectacular as his 2017 season. But it was still a great one. He clinched a record-extending twentieth grand slam, became the oldest player to be ranked number 1 in the world, and won four ATP tour titles overall.

As he has shown this year, albeit not very consistently, he is still capable of brilliance and magic. But father time does seem to have finally caught up with him. It’s becoming increasingly difficult for him to string together six to seven good performances in a row. Let’s hope there is enough left in his tank to enthrall his fans in time to come.

Predictions for 2019:

100th Career Title

No Grand Slam Title

Appearance in the French Open

Possible Surprise: Retirement in front of his home crowd after hosting the Laver Cup in Geneva or at the Swiss Indoors Open in Basel