Anyone else sick of the Federer-bashing today?

[obackvalobasha]

SHame on you all those federer fan who is daubting at the ability of federer to beat nadal. what kinda fans are you. One loss on clay to a guy who he never played on clay and you all already giving up. shame on you. SO i guess you use to think federer never gonna make it to number one because he use to lose every single time to aggissi, hawitt. nalbanian hu?

you all god damn fake fans, you have no faith in federer. I think federer will figure nadal out I think all fed has to do is play more matches with nadal in clay. watch out for him next year. he will be on full flame. He is best at figureing out his opponent more then anybody. beside next year he will be underdog and he wont have much pressure. I wish him better luck next year.

 

[Meditator]

There was a saying in this book " In search of the warrior spirit"

Believing you can be perfect is the fatal imperfection.
Believing you're invulnerable is the ultimate vulnerability.
Being a warrior doesn't mean winning or even succeeding,
it means risking and failing and risking again, as long as you live.

Three cheers to those who tried and failed, and will try again......

 

[Fedubai]

Of course Nadal deserves credit. He was the better player. But some people are taking it too far. Losing it once in a while doesn't make him a choker, and failing doesn't make him a loser.

He tried his best, he just couldn't do it. He couldn't sustain a high level of play and Nadal had a lot to do with that. A lot to do with it. I just don't buy all this talk about "oh, well he didn't play his best, if he was at his best blah blah blah blah".

Neither were at their best. Players rarely are. In the end it comes down to determination, how you handle the situation, heart, intelligence, a little luck, etc.

That's usually how you win the match. But you can't win everytime. Federer did it in Miami but this time he lost. It happens guys. Don't deny Nadal credit, but don't call Federer a choker and a loser just because he lost this time.

 

[obackvalobasha]

I think federer was lacking of confidence and i could see the fire in nadal's eyes the minute he entered the court.

 

[benasp]

i don't saw Nadal win friday, fed lost cause of poor choise, like his backhand slice. and lots of unforced error. Noone can deny that nadal doesn't beat him all the ways he beat himself before

 

[ATXtennisaddict]

Apparently some ppl here have a mindset that most federer fans will not give credit to Nadal, or that we think that Federer is the greatest player ever, or that Fed is better than Sampras, or that he will surpass 14 grand slams, or etc etc

Guess what? Some of us definitely always give credit to the opponent. Or that we recognize no one will top Sampras's 14 GS until the news says someone won 15. Or forget there are ppl who are ALREADY called legends in the game.

There are some of us who like Federer because at this moment in time, no one can play more beautiful tennis than Federer. I am a fan of beautiful tennis, but I am realistic. I prefer never to predict a player's future (because the future is uncertain) and I prefer to only say things when there are solid facts to back it up.

I say forget what Federer does in his career. Not our concern. Just enjoy watching his tennis. Don't bash a player because of a loss (unless you had lots of money riding on the match,idiot). Rather,see how he reacts later.Enjoy watching tennis of Safin and all the other players, when they are at their best. It's beautiful, inspiring, and makes you wanna get on the court and play well too.

 

[davey25]

If Roger did not overcome 0-2 and 0-30 against an 18-year old boy in the Nasdaq final, he would have been beaten comfortably by an 18-year old boy 3 straight times. After this year when he finishes it with 0 slam titles, and not the world 1, he will have been year-end 1 less times than a roadrunner like Hewitt who has done it twice, and only 1 out of 3 years. It is now obvious, except for one year, 2004, he crumbles under pressure and cant produce on the big stage. Many of us, including myself, were obviously sucked into all the hype surrounding him by promoters, and tennis insiders, who vastly overrated his abilities.

 

[Chopin]

davey25
This was one match on his least favorite surface against the best clay-courter. He's only lost 3 matches this year, he has obviously already produced on the "big stage," that is why he has won 4 grand slams in his young career. I have no doubt Federer will finish #1 this year, do you think Nadal is going to be contender on grass? The only thing that is obvious is your lack of understanding for the game.

 

[davey25]

He has only lost 3 matches this year, and 2 are slam semis. That pretty much says it all.

 

[davey25]

I agree Roger will end the year 1, he probably will lose both Wimbledon and the U.S open. However Nadal certainly wont win either, and being tied in points with Roger now, will end up behind at years end for sure. Hewitt or Roddick could win a slam, as could a few others, but they are all too far behind Roger in points. So Roger will end the year as the slamless 1, something that is common in womens tennis.

 

[Fedubai]

This is just sick. I mean man, whatever happened to loyalty, whatever happened to faith and belief in something, or someone.

Yes, he lost a big match yesterday. He over-thought I think and he spun himself, and Nadal helped, into something that he couldn't get out of. Get it? He failed. On the big points, he couldn't keep himself together and he cracked.

Yeah that's right, the 'Mighty Fed', known for rising to the occasion, failed this time.

Guess what buddy, it happens to everybody. Sport is a lot like life. You're gonna fail sometimes, face it. What matters is what you do about it. He's a great champion, a real champion, and I firmly believe that. But all champions fail at times. It's reality.

So you can say that really, all his life he's been a choker. He's a loser in disguise, and his opponents just had fatal (per se) flaws and that's really why he won all the time. And it's so easy to think like that. But is it right?

I think he's got a very deep fire to be the best tennis player in the world. Just enjoying hitting a yellow ball around isn't enough on this stage. So yeah, he fails a few times and he will fail at times in the future. But am I, and are the rest of us, going to give up on the guy just because he failed? Don't we all fail at times? I've seen a lot of fair-weather people since yesterday come out of the woodwork.

Not me. I've seen his heart. Maybe you haven't or now don't want to. But I know it's there. He fails, yes. But he's not a loser.

What makes you a loser is not that you failed to succeed. It's that you failed to try.

And whatever bandwagon you want to jump on and off of at different times this year, you're not gonna make me believe that Roger Federer is a loser, or some choker that can't keep his head on straight. He failed this time, and he'll fail more times in his career. It's how you react.

And I don't think he's about to lose his fire. So when the going gets tough, most of us will still be by him. Some of us won't. It's your choice.

 

[laurie]

Got back from Roland Garros. Its a wonderful tournament. I would recommend anyone to go there. Its a fantastic atmosphere and I actually prefer it to Wimbledon even though Wimbledon is my local tournament (along with Queens). Also, the tickets are much more accessible than Wimbledon.

As for Federer, I haven't read all of the comments here but I have a few observations:

I think its a bit misleading to think Federer grew up on clay just because he's from Europe. I saw an interview with him on BBC last year. Switzerland is a cold country and from what I understand he learned his craft on indoor courts. Players tend to be the players they turn out to be depending on the surface they grew up on. As we know Federer is an extremely attacking player.

The problem on clay is not the shotmaking or sliding, its just patience more than anything else. Sometimes these players have to grind it out and wait for the opening. Thats not Federer's style. He likes to hit a winner after the second, third, fourth or fifth shot. Some of these guys will go for the winner or hit a drop shot after 15 to 20 shot rallies. Surprsingly against Nadal Federer was feeling the pressure to either hit winners or stay patient. Because his forehand was hitting the net or going long a lot in the latter stages. Nadal had the measure of him in that respect.

Federer can win the French but he will need some luck as players will feel they can get to him there. Moya was right. The winner of Roland Garros will again speak Spanish.

As for Federer been targeted and written off (Mr Aykhan for instance), its foolish to get on someone's case after all his gave it his best and it wasn't good enough at that moment.

But also as a Sampras fan, I think the real Federer fans will show when he loses. I was a Sampras fan even when it looked like he gave up on tring to win the French from 1997 onwards. I'm sure the real Federer fans will stick by him. He doesn't need bandwagon jumpers.

 

[daniel_rst]

This is getting pretty comical. All I have to say is that I hope all you people posting the "Fed is done" and "Slamless #1" put your money where your mouth is and bet against Federer at Wimbledon and the US Open. I've been making a killing betting on tennis so far this year. I almost never bet on Federer to win since the odds are almost always so skewed. But if you guys want to help by moving the line please, please do so. LOL.

 

[Haka Boy]

I cant believe how many threads are devoted to Federer losing a match. Yes he is human Can we move on....

 

[Chadwixx]

these ppl just have alot of built up frustration. they realize this is the last chance they will have to cash in on a fed defeat. most of them dont even play tennis much less understand the game. they know roddick/williams are good cause they see them on tv alot.