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July 3, 2007
Where Federer scores over Borg and Sampras
Why Roger Federer will be regarded as the best there ever was.
By Tracy Austin, The Guardian
Is Roger Federer the greatest tennis player of all time? Right
now, you cannot say so definitively but come 2010 I believe there will
be no doubts. By then he will have beaten Pete Sampras's record of 14
grand slam titles and possibly won the French Open too. But for the
next few days Federer has a more pressing record on his mind: equalling
Bjorn Borg's record of five straight Wimbledon men's singles titles.
Much is made of the similarities between Federer and Borg,
particularly in their demeanour on court. Both men have a calmed
intensity to them but Borg really had ice flowing through his veins
when he played: he never said a word or allowed his facial expression
to change, even when John McEnroe was ranting away. The other day
Federer screamed after mis-hitting a shot. Some spectators would have
had a heart attack if Borg had ever done that.
Off court Borg was friendly and there was none of this "I'm above
you" attitude you get from many top players but he never had the sort
of effervescent personality that dominates a room. Federer is more
playful, more open. He jokes around with other players and deals
superbly with the media. Many players who come to the BBC booth for
interviews are surrounded by their agents and rarely make eye contact
but Federer just walks in, smiles and says "Hey!" If a technician asked
for his autograph, he would probably give it to him. To me he carries
his No1 ranking better than anyone I've seen.
Borg was a fantastic player who won 11 grand slam titles: he would
pick off the French title on the clay and then, a month later, win
Wimbledon. And the grass back then was much faster than it is now,
which did not suit his natural baseline game. Could he have matched
Federer? Possibly. But it is difficult to compare players of such
different eras.
Borg's game was a product of his time and his wooden racket. He
loved to stand eight feet behind the baseline to return and then work
his way into a point. But you put a modern racket into Borg's hand when
he was five years old and I guarantee he would be a different player.
He would have been like Rafael Nadal, taking a rip at every shot.
To tennis fans it is a shame that Federer's career did not overlap a
little more with Sampras. Sampras's serve was heavier than Federer's -
his second serve was just not attackable - and his volley was also
superb. He played with a wooden racket when he started, so he learnt
the proper technique on the volley, unlike most modern players who play
from the baseline and come forward only when they have to.
Sampras says his strategy against Federer would be to pepper his
backhand and rush him - all-out attack. He also believes that, if both
players had played at their peak, they would have had their fair share
of wins with neither player dominating. I think that is about right but
I still think Roger would have had the edge.
Andre Agassi said it best. When he was asked to compare Federer and
Sampras, he said: "There's nowhere to go when you play Roger." To me
that was his way of telling us who he thought was the better player.
With Sampras at least you could target the backhand - but Federer has
no weaknesses. He can serve and volley. He can stay back. He can crush
you with both forehand and backhand. And he moves so well.
Can anyone beat Federer this week? I cannot see it. Nadal has a
slight chance, especially as the courts here bounce higher than they
used to, but it probably needs to be dryer for him to have a realistic
hope. Andy Roddick, meanwhile, has to use his big serve to get to the
net and force Federer to hit passing shots because he is not going to
beat him from the baseline. The problem is that Andy is not a natural
volleyer; he tried coming forward in Australia and was thrashed.
For Roger to lose, someone will have to play the match of his life
while Roger has a massive off day. But even when Roger struggles he
usually wins. He always seems to have an extra gear he can go to.
Sampras was the same.
Sampras recently predicted that Federer will win 17 or 18 major
titles before he retires. That sounds about right to me. Borg might
have quit aged 26 but Roger, at 25, is still extremely hungry. He is
chasing that elusive French Open and Sampras's grand slam record - and
for a player with his talent both are eminently obtainable.
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