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June 16, 2005
Federer carries real edge into defence
By Matthew Syed, The Times
Our correspondent is put through his paces by the Swiss at Hampton Court Palace
AMID
the ancient cloisters of Hampton Court Palace in southwest London,
Roger Federer was talking history. The world No 1, gunning for a third
consecutive Wimbledon title, declared that he is fully aware of the
expectation, voiced by the likes of Boris Becker and Rod Laver, that he
will eclipse the legends of the past to become the greatest. “I do not feel the weight of expectation as a burden,” he said. “I
like to walk out on to the court as the favourite, with everyone else
looking at me and wondering how I will play. But I am not yet thinking
about getting to 14 (the record for grand-slam titles, held by Pete
Sampras) because there are other tournaments that I enjoy and want to
win.” We
were chatting in the locker-room adjacent to the real tennis court
yesterday afternoon after an immensely enjoyable hit courtesy of
Maurice Lacroix, Federer’s watch sponsor. The court is one of the
oldest in the world, on the same site as the one built by Cardinal
Wolsey in the 1520s. You could smell the antiquity. The rules are
bewildering with the court containing more lines than a zebra’s back.
Goodness knows how the laws of lawn tennis evolved from such beginnings
— it makes monkey to man seem like child’s play. Unsurprisingly, Federer took to it rather quicker than I.
“Once I got the feel of the weight of the ball, I was OK,” he said,
which is something of an understatement. He metabolised the subtleties
of the ancient art like a mid-morning snack. Chris Ronaldson, a former
world champion, was impressed. “He improved at an astonishing rate,” he
said. “I guess we should have expected it, but it was strange to see a
beginner striking the ball with such consistency and grace.” Federer is almost as stylish in conversation, with an easy
charm and boyish grin. But, as with all great champions, there is a
vindictive competitiveness lying just beneath the cool exterior. All it
took was the mention of a certain 19-year-old from Spain to bring it
flooding to the surface. When I put it to him that Rafael Nadal would
be a tough rival in the years to come, the 23-year-old bristled. “Part of the reason he won (the French Open) in Paris was
because he is new and the rest of the players have yet to figure him
out,” he said. “I think that some opponents were intimidated by his
physique. But I was surprised that he did not play better in Halle
where he was clearly knocked out of his stride by someone who was
willing to come to the net. I would say that someone like Tim Henman
has a better chance of winning Wimbledon.” There is no doubt about who starts the third grand-slam
tournament of the year as favourite. Federer is at his dazzling best on
grass, his talent discernible in every drop of the shoulder and flick
of the wrist. He is one of the few sportsmen who can conjure what could
be described as the illusion of complicity. That is to say that he is
so quick to the ball that his opponent can seem like an accomplice with
whom he has choreographed the performance in advance. A measure of his dominance is that his season so far is
considered a disappointment, despite reaching two grand-slam
semi-finals and winning seven titles, the last of which extended his
unbeaten run on grass to 29 matches. Winning Wimbledon, however, the
title that he prizes above all others, would change all that. “I think
I am in great shape,” he said. “I played much better in Halle than I
expected, winning both singles and doubles, which has given me plenty
of practice on grass.” It is a tribute to Nadal that he has the great man, not
exactly rattled, but certainly fretful. It is a rivalry that promises
much and could take the Swiss maestro to even more elevated levels of
virtuosity. With Federer you get the impression that the best is still
to come. INSIDE TRACK
Real tennis, as distinct from lawn tennis, actually has four names.
In Australia it is called royal tennis, in the United States it is
court tennis and in France it is jeu de paume.
The game was originally played with bare hands, but is now played with an asymmetrical wooden racket.
The balls are handmade: a core of cork is tightly bound with
string and covered with felt. Each ball lasts about two weeks before
needing to be remade.
Scoring is the same as in lawn tennis, with the exception that
a set is won by the first to six games even at five-all. A handicapping
system is in place to ensure parity.
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