Roger Federer: What Winning Wimbledon 2011 Would Mean for His Legacy

By
at Internationaled.org

Published: June 17, 2011

commentComment        

We are at the threshold of yet another tournament at the All-England Club. It's that time of the year again, a fortnight-long ritual history lesson on hallowed turf—the hallowed turf, for most people. But since the early Open era, grass isn’t played on nearly as much as it used to be.

Indeed, for eight straight years we had a king of grass, who could swagger around Centre Court in true royal fashion. Taking up his throne at the first offering, Roger Federer opened proceedings at SW19 every single year from 2004-2010. He was lucky in 2009, because that true honour should have gone to the defending champion, Rafael Nadal, who had to retire before the first proceedings even opened.

This year, however, will mark the first time in these eight years that Roger Federer won’t be commencing play on Centre Court. In fact, there is a valid argument to be made that he is no longer the king, and even here, on his beloved grass, he will next week have to play second (really third) fiddle.

That new man, of course, is Rafael Nadal, who is unbeaten in 14 matches here. He downed Federer just two weeks ago at the final of the French, re-enacting, it seems, the famous scenes of the epic of the Fedaliad. The script, as it is written, should see Federer win at Wimbledon and, most would hope, do so by defeating Nadal in the final.

One might easily forget that there was a time—that is to say, just a few years ago—when Roger Federer could carve up anyone on this surface as easily as a Swiss army knife. He was unbeatable on grass and, from the years 2004-06, was practically invincible.

It helped naturally that he played king from the start—beginning Wimbledon in the first round, as the defending champion, as stressful an exercise as it will always be, became for Federer a source of renewal.

It helped also, of course, that his was a game most uniquely suited to the trials of grass. The s...
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Tennis

Latest News


Comments

Comments are closed.

Sponsors

Bruins Tickets The Boston Bruins are a professional ice hockey team based in Boston, Massachusetts. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League.

Red Wings Tickets The Detroit Red Wings are a professional ice hockey team based in Detroit, Michigan. They are members of the Central Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League.

Penguins Tickets The Pittsburgh Penguins are a professional ice hockey team based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League.

New York Rangers Tickets play their home games at Madison Square Garden, they are one of the oldest teams in the NHL, having joined in 1926 as an expansion franchise, and are part of the group of teams referred to as the Original Six.

San Jose Sharks Tickets The San Jose Sharks are a professional ice hockey team based in San Jose, California, United States.

Toronto Maple Leafs Tickets The Toronto Maple Leafs are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League.

New Jersey Devils Tickets The New Jersey Devils are a professional ice hockey team based in Newark, New Jersey. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League.

Washington Capitals Tickets The Washington Capitals are a professional ice hockey team based in Washington, D.C.

Buffalo Sabres Tickets The Buffalo Sabres are a professional ice hockey team based in Buffalo, New York. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League. Get the Sabres and all of your NHL Tickets here.

NASCAR season is on of the most attended sports in the world. NASCAR Tickets to the best tracks is a must every year. Some of these tracks are: Talladega Tickets, Lowes Motor Speedway Tickets, Pocono Raceway Tickets, located in Ridgeway Virginia you have Martinsville Speedway Tickets and southern US you have two of the most popular Atlanta Motor Speedway Tickets and Texas Motor Speedway Tickets. Don't miss all the racing events this year!

Boston Red Sox Tickets The Boston Red Sox are a member of the Major League Baseball’s American League Eastern Division. Since 1912, the Red Sox's home ballpark has been Fenway Park. This is one of the hottest MLB Tickets sales of any team in the major league.

New York Yankees Tickets The New York Yankees are a professional baseball team based in the borough of the Bronx, in New York City, New York and are a member of Major League Baseball's American League East Division. Get tickets to one of the hottest games of the season Yankees Red Sox Tickets.

Chicago Cubs Tickets The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the Central Division of Major League Baseball's National League.

Phillies Tickets The Philadelphia Phillies are a Major League Baseball team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They are the oldest continuous, one-name, one-city franchise in all of professional American sports, dating to 1883.

Orioles Tickets The Baltimore Orioles are a professional baseball team based in Baltimore, Maryland.

Do you love wrestling? Get your WWE Tickets and WWE Survivor Series Tickets today!