Roger Federer: Bold, Bloodied, and Burnished By Battle

By
at Internationaled.org

Published: August 14, 2010

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Toronto.

Daytime fiery heat dissipates into balmy evening warmth.

Blue sky fades away to azure, purple, navy.

Flags that fell in primary-color folds lift with the fluttering breeze in salute to a pair of warriors.

Massed ranks glow in readiness for the battle, allegiances brandished in red and blue and white.

Two upright, steely combatants, brandishing their weapons of choice, step up to the line: Roger Federer and Tomas Berdych.

The field of conflict is tranquil blue, edged in calming green. It belies the heat of the coming conflict and the brutality of the engagement.

For a 12th time, these two men stand face-to-face.

On the Swiss side, the face is sun-bronzed, angular, dark eyes deeply set below heavy brows.

On the Czech side, latte-pale, youthful lines set off aquamarine shards of eyes shadowed under the protective shield of a white brim.

On the Swiss side, maturity, experience, and reputation sit within a new fallibility. Eight times the victor, the loser of the last two battles.

On the Czech side, eager youth, growing confidence, keen ambition. Riding high on consecutive wins over the master.

The Swiss swings into battle with vigor and intensity dressed in honey-smooth disguise. A fluid wave of the body, and his serve is knifed down the line, sweeps away like a comet, or flies from the blue acrylic like a jumping bean.

He glides to the net, carves down a volley, targets the lines like an exocet. He fires backhands in a blur of his sweeping arm towards corners and sides and opponent. He lasers forehands in winner after winner, side to side, straight and angled, topspun and flat.

As the Czech swings into serve, the Swiss feet begin their dance of death, stealing inside the baseline to pick off the ball with eagle-eyed sharpness. Time stands still as Federer's racket makes perfect cont...
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Tennis

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