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January 30, 2006
Tears reveal humility behind Federer's greatness
By Bill Barclay, Reuters
LONDON - Every Roger Federer grand slam success
is accompanied by a fresh deluge of eye-watering statistics,
but the tears of the great Swiss were the most telling part of
his Australian Open triumph.
Federer's four-set victory over Marcos Baghdatis on Sunday
will not be remembered for the tennis itself, intriguing as it
was to see the precocious Cypriot dominate the first set before
eventually ceding to the world number one's superiority.
The final was special above all for the remarkable sight of
a player long recognized as the best in the world clutching the
winner's trophy like a comfort rag and weeping uncontrollably
as if it was the last thing he had been expecting.
Someone watching Federer for the first time could have been
forgiven for thinking this was his maiden grand slam victory,
not his seventh in seven finals and his third in succession
after Wimbledon and the U.S. Open last year.
It was not the behavior of a player whose dominance of the
men's game is almost absolute and whose place alongside the
greatest players the sport has ever seen is already assured.
"I don't forget that it's been a tough road for me. I amaze
myself every time I do well," Federer said.
Those words and his tears reveal the extraordinary humility
that underpins his greatness as a tennis player.
Such modesty insulates the Swiss from the dangers of
complacency. The rest of the world may think he is virtually
unbeatable but Federer genuinely believes he is vulnerable,
despite statistics which include winning his last 52 matches on
a hard court.
MENTAL STRENGTH
As a result the 24-year-old's quest for improvement never
falters and his concentration never wavers on court, his face a
mask of serene intensity whether he has just lost a set or, as
in Sunday's third set, won it 6-0.
There is not a player among the top 10 who can match such
mental strength.
At a telling point in the final, when a correct umpire
over-rule allowed Federer to level the match at one-set all,
Baghdatis approached the chair official and suggested the point
in question had been effectively match point.
It was a fatal sign of psychological weakness from the
Cypriot and the exuberant spirit that had accompanied his
startling progress suddenly drained away.
Baghdatis won only two more games and Federer wrapped up
what in the end was a convincing 5-7 7-5 6-0 6-2 victory before
emotion overwhelmed him so endearingly.
After a difficult start to 2006 for the sport following the
doping cases of Mariano Puerta and Sesil Karatantcheva, it was
a timely reminder of how lucky tennis is to have the exemplary
Swiss at its pinnacle.
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