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Sunday, June 25, 2006
In the presence of greatness
By Jon Henderson, The Observer
He might have lost to Rafael Nadal in Paris again, but the world number one has a fourth Wimbledon title in his sights - and becoming the most successful grass-court player ever will be just a bonus
Great sportsmen pass through some
clearly defined phases before they can claim membership of the
institute of greatness: the first, impressive results that provide an
intimation of being special; the consolidation through steady
accumulation of major prizes; and then the phase in which they start to
challenge the achievements of the titans of their sport. Roger Federer
is deep into this third phase, poised to break Bjorn Borg's grass-court
record of 41 wins in a row and in two weeks' time join Borg and Pete
Sampras as the only men in the modern era to win four Wimbledon titles
in a row.
There is something else about the 24-year-old Swiss - he has the poise
and demeanour of a great champion, both on and off the court. We meet
in London at exactly the moment Andy Murray is losing angrily in the
quarter-finals of the tournament in Nottingham. It is hard not to
compare the two: Murray defiantly unkempt in how he behaves and looks;
Federer incapable of being in any way anything other than immaculate.
This afternoon he is wearing a hand-stitched white jacket specially
designed with his name and a Wimbledon-themed crest on the pocket,
immaculately laundered jeans and expensive Prada loafers. His hands
look manicured and sensitive, more those of a violinist than the
percussionist he is. In
Nottingham, Murray is hammering his racket into the turf as he becomes
increasingly frustrated with his inability to cope with the weather and
his unflustered Italian opponent; in London, Federer is saying, in
response to a question comparing him to Tiger Woods: 'He's brought
something new to the golf game and that's what I also try to do with
tennis, with the beauty of the strokes for which I have received many
compliments over the years.' Even for Federer this apparent assertion
that while playing he pays heed to the aesthetic side of his game does
seem a little high-flown and he tones down the remark a little. 'It
came along over time that I had a nice technique, but I thought a nice
technique would only get picked up if I played on Centre Court and not
on Court 15. So that's why my goal was to make sure that I got to
Centre Court.' Most impressively, Federer is entirely at ease
with the notion of greatness, discussing it matter-of-factly, making
observations that are not boastful only because they are true. He
describes his 41 wins on grass as 'quite incredible' and says that
because 'I'm so good on all the surfaces' it is not just on grass that
in some matches he can feel unbeatable. He plays down the
importance to him of moving clear of Borg in the number of successive
grass-court victories, which he will do if he wins his tricky opener on
Centre Court tomorrow against France's Richard Gasquet, an impressive
winner in Nottingham yesterday . 'For me, honestly, it doesn't mean too
much. Somehow it's not what I'm playing tennis for. It's not to break
in-a-row streaks. They don't turn you on. It all sounds great, to me
also, but I care more about the opponents who I beat and I care about
the tournaments I'm playing at the moment. If streaks like this come
along it's great, I love it. But I'm very well aware that all Borg's
wins were at Wimbledon. Mine have been at Halle [the tournament in
Germany that follows the French Open each year] and Wimbledon. You
could think that's more difficult. I don't think so.' But
statistics such as these do help to measure him against great players
of earlier eras. 'They do. They put you up against the all-time greats
and that is always nice. But to win Wimbledon four times, this is in a
different league from winning a sequence of matches on grass. This is
something extraordinary. I was already happy with winning two
Wimbledons, I was even more happy with three. Now a fourth may be
coming along, I don't know, but the preparation has been good and I'm
looking forward to seeing how it goes again because that opening Monday
is pressure and I hope I can survive.' A diversion follows on
Federer's annual build-up to Wimbledon, playing (and winning) the
tournament in Halle and then travelling to London, earlier each year to
give maximum time for preparation, including having 'to knock off all
the media and sponsorship obligations'. He, his girlfriend, Mirka, and
members of his entourage take over a house in Wimbledon, a different
one each year. 'Once it was too big, once it was too small, once it was
too expensive... I don't really care too much, I'm just looking for a
house that's comfortable and I feel like this is a place that could
make me win the tournament.' He says that Mirka picks the house and 'I,
of course, agree', but adds quickly, lest we should think he is under
anyone's thumb, 'not because I have to, but because we have the same
taste'. Quite inadvertently, Federer highlights what an
exceptional player he is when musing on whether he relishes the
prospect of someone coming through to challenge his standing as world
number one. He lists those he has already seen off and you suddenly
realise how many outstanding players have had their ambitions crushed
by Federer, who has won seven of the past 12 grand slams, starting with
his first Wimbledon success in 2003. At this year's Wimbledon he will
be aiming to reach at least the semi-finals for the ninth successive
grand slam. 'I've had some good battles since I've been number
one - with Andre Agassi, with Lleyton Hewitt, with Andy Roddick, with
Marat Safin - and now with [Rafael] Nadal. For me, they've all been
very special because I've played them very often in finals.' And, with
one notable exception, prevailed against them all. Nadal is that
exception, the Spaniard having beaten Federer in the 2005 French Open
semi-finals and in this year's final two weeks ago to establish his
supremacy on clay. How Federer would love to play him at Wimbledon here
in the title match on World Cup final day. The chances are he
will not, though, with Nadal's fitness and limited grass-court
experience making him an unlikely finalist despite his number-two
seeding. Federer nominates Hewitt and Roddick as the players he fears
most because 'they're the guys with the greatest experience on grass,
next to Agassi'. How about Tim Henman, who has reached more Wimbledon
semi-finals than any of them except Agassi, and is Federer's likely
second-round opponent? 'Yes, Tim,' Federer says by way of
acknowledgement. 'But he's not been winning too many matches.' If
there is a blemish, perhaps it is Federer's failure to assimilate the
idea of a killer instinct in quite the same way as Nadal has. Federer
can give the impression that it is better to lose beautifully than win
ugly. There was a hint of this a fortnight ago in Paris when Federer
still went for wonderful winners when just staying in rallies with
Nadal would probably have been more productive. Referring to this
defeat, he says something that makes you wonder whether he no longer
dislikes losing as much as a great champion instinctively does. 'It
took me a very short time to get over it. Maybe it was because I
thought the run of winning three grand slams in a row, plus reaching
the final in the fourth, was so fantastic that there was no need to be
disappointed. I lost to the better man on the day, so there was not
much reason to be too disappointed. When I woke up on the Monday
morning, OK, I felt it was a little bit of a pity, but the grass is
coming up and everything is all right.' Somehow you feel John
McEnroe and Boris Becker would still have been smashing the furniture.
And one defeat was all it took to persuade Borg it was time to start
considering retirement at close to the age Federer is now.
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