Federer's Feet of Clay
To those of you familiar with tennis please excuse the pun. I just watched a tape of the Roger Federer v Rafael Nadal semi-final at the French Open. This was the match that everybody had been anticipating. The world's undisputed #1 versus the 19 year old clay wunderkind.
The result was a rare defeat for Federer who had been 46-2 so far this year. Nadal was just too consistent, hitting the lines with machine like precision, while Federer hit 62 unforced errors to just 32 for the Spaniard.
I'm disappointed. Perhaps one expects too much sometimes of Federer. He possesses such a sublime, rarefied talent. Watching him play tennis must be like having heard Mozart play the piano, his talent and skill sometimes seems beyond that of a mere mortal. But alas he too has been stopped on the slow red clay of Roland Garros like other great tennis virtuosos before him such as Sampras and McEnroe. The game on clay is so different. The power of the serve is dampened and many groundstrokes that would have been winning shots on another surface are readily returnable .
Credit must be given to Nadal. He combines not only the consistency that is traditionally rewarded at Roland Garros, but also a shot making talent that sees winners flow from his racket almost as easily as Federer's. With the weight of great expectations already on his young shoulders he took his opportunities and converted them without succumbing to nerves or the pressure of the occasion.
The result was a rare defeat for Federer who had been 46-2 so far this year. Nadal was just too consistent, hitting the lines with machine like precision, while Federer hit 62 unforced errors to just 32 for the Spaniard.
I'm disappointed. Perhaps one expects too much sometimes of Federer. He possesses such a sublime, rarefied talent. Watching him play tennis must be like having heard Mozart play the piano, his talent and skill sometimes seems beyond that of a mere mortal. But alas he too has been stopped on the slow red clay of Roland Garros like other great tennis virtuosos before him such as Sampras and McEnroe. The game on clay is so different. The power of the serve is dampened and many groundstrokes that would have been winning shots on another surface are readily returnable .
Credit must be given to Nadal. He combines not only the consistency that is traditionally rewarded at Roland Garros, but also a shot making talent that sees winners flow from his racket almost as easily as Federer's. With the weight of great expectations already on his young shoulders he took his opportunities and converted them without succumbing to nerves or the pressure of the occasion.
posted by Dr. Kananga at 5:25 PM
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