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August 28, 2005
Transcript: Hot stuff
By Liz Hayes (Reporter) and Nick Greenaway (Producer), 60 Minutes
INTRODUCTION:
LIZ HAYES: We try our best to be detached
observers but, Lord knows, sometimes it's not easy. Women in the
audience will know exactly what I'm talking about when they hear the
next two words — Roger Federer. Not only is he number one in the world,
he is well on the way to becoming the greatest player of all time. And
he's so beautiful to watch — in a purely tennis sense, of course. Those
graceful clean strokes, the power, the sheer mastery of his game. No
wonder Lleyton Hewitt is so spooked. But on the eve of the US Open,
what is he doing in the sweltering heat of the Middle East? Come along
and find out. STORY:
LIZ HAYES: In the middle of an
Arabian summer, Dubai is one of the hottest places on the planet. But
it's here that the coolest man in world sport comes to train. ROGER FEDERER: I'm going to sweat. Not only me. Also you guys, hey. LIZ HAYES: The heat would kill a brown dog, and that's just the way Roger
Federer and his coach, Australian legend Tony Roche, like it. Together,
they are preparing for the cauldron of the US Open at Flushing Meadows.
Just remind me again, Roger, why are we here in Dubai? What is the
temperature? ROGER FEDERER: Well, what is it … 44 maybe, and
about 60 percent to 70 percent humidity. It is more because it's in the
middle of Switzerland and Australia. A little closer to Switzerland. TONY ROCHE: A little? I don't know about your geography. ROGER FEDERER: Yeah. But it is a straight flight. LIZ HAYES: Now, the best thing I've found so far is I reckon you could lose a couple of kilos just by standing still. ROGER FEDERER: Look there. Tony's dripping... TONY ROCHE: That's me. And I'm just feeding the ball. LIZ HAYES: With training partner Luke, another Aussie on the court, it's
clear Federer likes the antipodean connection. Is he the genius that
you are quoted to have said he is? TONY ROCHE: Well, I think
he's such an all-round player, which is a little unusual in today's
tennis. He sort of reminds me a lot of Rod Laver. LIZ HAYES: He has described you as a genius. That was good of him, wasn't it? ROGER FEDERER: Yeah, that's good. But he never tells it to my face, you know. LIZ HAYES: He tells everyone else and not you. Do those comparisons make you feel nervous? ROGER FEDERER: They make me hot. I don't know why I get hot. LIZ HAYES: Did it? ROGER FEDERER: Yeah. It's something — to be faced with a compliment like
this, it's not so sort of the usual thing, you know. And I have a lot
of respect for him, what he has achieved as a player, as a coach and
everything and the way he is as a person. To hear it, it's very nice. LIZ HAYES: Roger Federer may be the world's best player, but he knew Tony
Roche could make him better. It took Federer more than a year to win
Roche over, pursuing him all the way to his home in Sydney. TONY ROCHE: I thought, gee, he is the number one player in the world and he
is willing to come out a week before Christmas. And he actually left on
Christmas Day. He had Christmas on the flight coming back. And I
thought, well, you know, I've got to do something. I just can't say no.
LIZ HAYES: Those volleys, you need to pick them up a bit, Roger. He's doing OK, isn't he? TONY ROCHE: Yeah. LIZ HAYES: What can you do? TONY ROCHE: Oh, well, you can always get a little bit more penetration and a
little bit more stick on the ball and certainly work on his balance.
Because he's such a great athlete, that when he comes in to the net,
the only way that somebody should be able to get a ball past him is if
they can hit it on the line. LIZ HAYES: His demolition of Andy
Roddick in this year's Wimbledon final confirmed the mantle of
greatness rests easily on Federer's shoulders. It was his third
straight Wimbledon finals victory. But it was much more than just a
good old thrashing. It was a display of artistry that transcended mere
sport. As former champions Boris Becker, John McEnroe and John Newcombe
looked on, Federer took the game to a new level. JOHN NEWCOMBE:
At one stage, Roddick just looked over his coach's box and went, "What
do I do?" It's almost like you're out there with a fighter and you hit
him with the best punch you've ever thrown and the guy doesn't move and
then just goes, bang and knocks you out. ANDY RODDICK: You run
out of options because he has become such a complete player so, you
know, maybe I'll just punch him or something. I don't know. LIZ HAYES: Roger Federer's parents exposed him to tennis when he was a
toddler. And it seems even then, the boy and the racquet were made for
each other. He was also a gifted soccer player, but at 12, decided
tennis was his destiny. ROGER FEDERER: Yeah. I always liked the
idea of being in control. Like in tennis, you win or lose, it's you to
blame. In soccer, I always felt like, 'Oh, the goalkeeper made this
mistake. Why didn't he tackle that guy earlier?' I always find these
excuses, even though I really enjoy the team sport. LIZ HAYES:
It was at about this time when a young Federer would meet another
Australian coach — Peter Carter. The journeyman tennis player turned
coach would have a huge and lasting impression on Roger's life. ROGER FEDERER: I think he's had the most influence on my game as a coach.
And, of course, next to my parents, maybe also as a person, you know.
We had great times together. That's very clear. And he really actually,
I think, teached me the beautiful technique I play today. LIZ HAYES: But it was a fragile beauty. For all Federer's extraordinary
talent and technique, the young Adonis had feet of clay and a very bad
temper. ROGER FEDERER: I was very up and down, I would say.
When I would lose matches, I would cry very much especially. I would
throw my racquet and scream around the tennis court. And then there was
one stage — I think it was about 16 or 17 — I couldn't practice more
for an hour or 1.5. And every time, I would lose my mind or they would
send me off or I would walk off automatically myself because I knew
what's going to come. LIZ HAYES: If there was one thing above
all else that forced Federer to get a grip and cool down it was the
tragic death of friend and mentor Peter Carter, in a car crash, in
August 2002. ROGER FEDERER: That was a big, big shock for me.
And it came at a really also a strange time. I was already not playing
very well. And sort of, it's hard to say, but it sort of was a wake-up
call for me, you know. I think that Peter would like to see me do
better and finally focus on the game maybe. I took it that way and it
really, really helped me. GRAPHIC: Eleven months after Peter's death, Roger wins his first Wimbledon title. COMMENTATOR:
Well, he's done it. Roger Federer — what an effort. Overcome by
emotion. A wonderful victory. It just shows you he looks so calm, cool
and collected out there — the emotions and the turmoil going on inside
him. He's very emotional and uptight inside. LIZ HAYES: Those tears we saw at Wimbledon, were they in any way about Peter Carter as well? ROGER FEDERER: Maybe a little bit. But I think more the emotions and just the
happiness, the disbelief. More of that. But then maybe also, just a
split second, obviously, about Peter, knowing that he would be very
proud. LIZ HAYES: I didn't even know you and I was sobbing with you. I mean, that's the impact you had. ROGER FEDERER: Yeah. It was very emotional. LIZ HAYES: How do you look back on that? ROGER FEDERER: I almost felt bad after I cried so much. But you know. LIZ HAYES: Federer became the first Swiss men's player to win a grand slam
tournament and now has five to his credit. He is today's undisputed
leader in world tennis. LLEYTON HEWITT: Roger Federer has taken
it to a new level at the moment, in the game, and that's what drives
you. That's what motivates you. LIZ HAYES: There could be no
greater contrast in styles than that of Roger Federer and Australia's
Lleyton Hewitt. One so measured and precise, the other all angst and
aggression. They're friends off the court but great rivals on it. ROGER FEDERER: I was struggling in the beginning with his way of acting on
the court. You know, I was like, 'Why he is doing this into my face?
Isn't it a little bit over the top?' and so on. I felt like he was
almost attacking me personally, you know. But then I realised actually,
well, he's just doing it to pump himself up, you know. LIZ HAYES: You don't find him rude? ROGER FEDERER: No, I don't think so. LIZ HAYES: I am told that psychologically he can't beat you. You've basically beaten him mentally. ROGER FEDERER: I have an edge over him at the moment. That's clear, you know. LIZ HAYES: Indeed, Federer has beaten Hewitt the last eight times they've met. JOHN NEWCOMBE: In my opinion, Lleyton has to admit to himself that he is
psyched out by Roger right now, game wise. So he's got to overcome this
attitude and he has to go out on the court and he's got to say, "Well,
Roger, I don't care what I'm going to have to do. If I have to rip your
throat out, I'm going to beat you." LIZ HAYES: It's not just
Hewitt. Every player is out to get Roger. But that's easier said than
done. This is a world champion who keeps things very simple. No
hangers-on, no entourage — just he and his girlfriend, Mirka Vavrinec.
For the past four years, she has travelled with him around the world,
cheering him on, managing his commitments whilst electing to stay out
of the limelight. So it's just he and the girlfriend? JOHN NEWCOMBE: And Tony. LIZ HAYES: (Laughs) Lucky Tony. ROGER
FEDERER: Tennis, I think the tennis life can be sometimes a very lonely
life also at times. You know, you're just there and you're waiting for
your matches. And there's a lot of waiting going on for us in the
business. You know, if Mirka is there, we're having a good time all of
us together. I never feel like I'm lonely. I never feel like the life
is boring. You know, so for me, this makes it much easier. LIZ HAYES: I imagine earlier in your career it was three-star hotels. ROGER FEDERER: Well, yeah. And in junior times, of course. LIZ
HAYES: At 24, Roger Federer has all the trappings of success. Like
Andre Agassi, his name has become a brand, earning him millions. But he
knows it's all really just about a man, a racquet and a ball. And that
the legacy he leaves tennis should be just as important as the next
grand slam. TONY ROCHE: There's a lot of players out there that
just want to take the money and don't really care where the game is
going to be in 10, 15 years time where as I think Roger is very much
aware of his responsibility to the game. LIZ HAYES: He seems to us to be an extremely nice guy. Is what you see what you get? TONY ROCHE: Yeah. Very much so. ROGER FEDERER: You should never forget that, if you go, somebody else will
take your spot. Tennis will live on, you know, but you won't. You're
just there in the moment itself, you know. You can never be bigger than
the game. And I think you always have to remember that.
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