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Looks like his.knee is critical. Glad he is not playing in Rio. Too dangerous! Unsanitary, possible terrotism!
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No Surprise...
He may have hurt himself in the match with Raonic. He slipped or it seemed as if his knee gave way in late in the fourth or fifth...around the service line. It seemed to me that he didn't really finish the match competing. It seemed to me that he hurt himself but played it out like the old champion that he is.
Wimbledon was his last hurrah. The quarterfinal with Cilic coming back from two sets down was perhaps the last thrill he is going to give us. God bless him for what he has done for the game. He is the last of it...it being the Classic Game. The last remaining link. There are players that will remember him and there are players out there that have built their own games around his. This new kid Shapovalov...the Canadian...is an example who says that he is a great fan of Federer.
That is all well and good but Federer really had some viable links to the game that are quickly becoming memories...stardust. Federer had his roots in a Wimbledon match with Pete Sampras in 2001, There is nobody around any longer that can carry the torch. The day that tennis died.
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Eloquent, but I wouldn't bury Federer just yet. He's now got 5 months to bulletproof the knee and back. A 34-year-old world class athlete can recover. He made the semis of Wimbledon without being 100% and without a proper leadup of tournaments.
Regardless, he's still the best show on tour, even in defeat. Hope to have him several more seasons, no matter the win-loss record.Comment
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Going...going...?
He's best in show...that's for certain. There isn't anyone that can even hold a candle to him. For all of Djokovic's dominance he still doesn't have the "watchability" appeal that Roger Federer has. Not even close.Originally posted by bdole View Post
For sure...hold out for the hope that he can return. But the fact of the matter is that realistically the clock is ticking. Mother Nature is running it's course. Roger Federer will not be satisfied being an also ran. A journeyman professional. Once at the pinnacle very few are willing to stay on and grind it out. It's been a long road for Roger...so many trips around the planet. Each stop he takes a beating now...even if he wins. The miles are catching up to him...the legs have been steadily declining in the past year or two. You could sense it in his movement even though he has uncanny anticipation and the ability to prepare for the shot. To get in position. His economy of movement has served him well but now it is the knees. Once they begin to go there is no stopping gravity.
Your comment about bulletproofing the different body parts are intriguing though. He has the best that money can buy so if anyone can do it he would. But I also question the motivation...no matter what the lips are saying as time goes on it gets more and more difficult to rekindle the fire. Regardless how I might come across I am the eternal optimist deep down inside but on the other hand I realize that the glass is not just half full or half empty...it is both. It is half full...and half empty. That is the definition of realism.
The rooster has come home to roost as much as I hate to admit it. Each tournament that goes by without Roger Federer in the draw takes us deeper and deeper into a post-Federer era of tennis. The near future looks very, very bleak. There isn't anyone that is even remotely close to replacing him. All of the "Next Generation" has been hyped as high as it can be and they are not delivering. Dominic Thiem and Alexander Zverev are two notable examples. They had pretty good runs but much of their success was hyped up as well...with victories over an injured and out of form Roger Federer to help boost their ratings.
The "Next Generation" might just very well be a bust. There isn't a single one of them that seems to be able to separate themselves from the herd or even to crack the top ten on a sustainable basis.
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2017 Australian Open...
Can a 35 year old Roger Federer make a legitimate comeback in the 2017 Australian Open?Comment
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I don't think he can. At least not in terms of winning the event. He's been incredibly lucky throughout his career in that he's had virtually no injuries. At 35 it may be a bridge too far to be anything like the force he was. But this doesn't matter, it's just nice to see him play.Originally posted by don_budge View Post2017 Australian Open...
Can a 35 year old Roger Federer make a legitimate comeback in the 2017 Australian Open?StottyComment
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The 2017 Wimbledon Championships...That is the Question!
He needs five tournaments minimum after he returns to even approach peak form. Match play being the only true conditioner for tournament play. bdole makes a case for it is within the realm of possibilities. realistically time takes its toll. Roger may as well quit while he is ahead.Originally posted by licensedcoach View Post
He's such an amazing player in that he hasn't had any injuries that kept him out of Grand Slams or caused him to default matches. Perfect form, gait and attitude being the great contributors of maximizing one's potential. How much potential can he possibly have left? If Federer believes that he has some he is going to find out how much it is as he puts his nose to the grindstone trying to make one last comeback.
What he showed us at Wimbledon was glorious and was perhaps lost in the shuffle. That five set loss against Milos Raonic more or less erased the memory of his five set victory over a fresh Marin Cilic (Cilic advanced in a walkover) which was perhaps the best match of the year. No...it was the best match of the year hands down. Federer found himself facing an existential moment at two sets to love down to a player with a red hot hand. Somehow he found something deep down inside of himself to resurrect his game to a supreme level to not only square the match...but he won it in the end. A remarkable performance and testimony to his ability to prepare himself under any and all conditions. Conditions that may at any given time be for or against but somehow he makes them work in his favor.
He was only inches away from a final showdown with Andy Murray and then it's any bodies guess. If Federer hadn't slipped and fell in that fifth set we may have seen him in the final. He wasn't the same after the slip. So we cannot count him out. He certainly has been lucky avoiding injuries but he has been pretty good on capitalizing on any and all eventualities. I'm wondering if bdole might just have something here. The Australian will be too much to hope for but can he galvanize that knee for one more run at Wimbledon. This is the question.
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Roger Federer vs. Marin Cilic...2016 Wimbledon Quarterfinal
My nomination for match of the year...2016. We waited for him all year...albeit impatiently. But good things come for those that wait. Patience is a virtue. Roger delivered on his promise...to make a go of it.Comment
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Since 1969 only seven men aged 31 or over have won a slam. Only three men have won a slam aged 32 or over. Rosewall stands alone winning slams aged 35 plus.
Players are taken care of so well these day: massages, physios, diet, ice baths, expert medical attention, etc. It will interesting to see whether the standard age barriers become extended.
StottyLast edited by stotty; 08-28-2016, 01:31 PM.StottyComment
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