What Roger Federer’s Performance in Dubai Means for Rest of the Season

By
at Internationaled.org

Published: March 3, 2014

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The aging process has not always been kind to Roger Federer, but an auspicious start to 2014 has produced a version of the Swiss more characteristic of yesteryear than last year. 

For the 17-time Grand Slam champion, Federer’s 2013 season left something to be desired, but with a back injury that hampered him for much of last season gone, the Swiss headed into 2014 better rested, better prepared and more focused.



At the end of last season, Sports Illustrated’s Jon Wertheim speculated that while Federer is undoubtedly nearing the end of his career, the Swiss still has more in him than his 2013 season might indicate:

His back is sore. His racket is small. He lacks a guru from the 1980s. He has won one Grand Slam in the last 47 months. The vectors tend to go in one direction: once athletes move beyond their primes, the downward slope is constant. Here's what Federer has going for him: he is still Roger Federer, blessed by the tennis gods. He still moves gracefully. He still can tinker with his schedule. He can regain self-belief. He can still discharge his duties better than all but three men on the planet. Write him off at your peril.

After a run to the semifinals in Melbourne in January, Federer looked to be regaining his old form after defeating Andy Murray, only to be cut down by Rafael Nadal, who has become not so much his rival as his personal bogeyman.

Back on court for the first time since Australia, Federer didn’t start the week in particularly strong form, but he ended it with a bang. Like he has so many times before—at the 2008 U.S. Open, 2009 French Open, 2012 Wimbledon—Federer came up with a brilliant performance just when we were ready to pronounce him over-the-hill.

Two solid, if not astounding performances to begin the week in Dubai saw Federer through to the quarterfinals, where he faced No. 2 Novak Djokovic, who had bested Fede...
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Tennis

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