I think Federer needs to fire Tony Roche (might be a spoiler)

[BreakPoint]

I'm watching the Federer-Davydenko match right now and what I noticed from this match and the Federer-Haas match is that Federer is better off staying at the baseline than coming in as often as he has been. Federer is so incredibly strong from the baseline that there's not really an urgent need for him to get to the net that much. It seems he's getting burned more often than not when he rushes the net off of less than perfect approach shots or when he tries to serve and volley. He is the master and an artist from the backcourt, but I think Roche must be getting him to attack the net more which I think is not really working for him right now. I honestly think Federer was better before he hired Roche, and fooling around with a winning formula isn't really working for Federer right now.

Now I'm not slamming net play. I'm an all-court player myslef and I serve and volley quite often and love playing the net. But it seems like Federer is trying to do too much of it or maybe at the wrong times and it's backfiring on him at the moment. Anyway, just my personal opinion. We'll see what happens with this match.

[rilokiley]

What else did Roche change in Federer's game? it doesn't seem like Federer can hold his own serve with ease like he used to. Anything else changed?

[Destructo]

I believe that Federer should not have hired Roche in the first place. I remeber him playing so beautifully before when he didn't even have a coach a couple of years back. But now it seems that he comes to the net way too much and I just don't see his game being as fluid as it was anymore. Total bummer. (Though his game still pretty much kicks ***. It's a highly subjective matter I guess.)

[Marius_Hancu]

No, the problem is that under Roche he hasn't made progress in that area of net play. Hist wrist isn't this strrong as Sampras', thus the instability under heavy fire. Thus, yes, you're right to some extent, perhaps they should part ways.

[akj27]

federer lost a set to davydenko, wahts the world coming to

[teedub]

this match has turned out to be so much more than i expected...

[Polaris]

Originally Posted by akj27

federer lost a set to davydenko, wahts the world coming to

Whew. That was some match!

Actually, Davydenko played really well. I was amazed to see him run Federer ragged while showing no signs of tiredness in spite of having played a five-setter and some four-setters leading up to this match. Federer's slice seemed to be faltering in its length, and made no impression on Davydenko. Besides, a lot of his net approaches were ill-advised, which is something one doesn't usually see from him. His volleys, while not as bad as the Haas match, seemed to lack bite today, so he had to hit two or three to win a point.

Anyway, Federer toughed it out and must be a very tired man at the end. We don't see him grind very often, but tennis is more interesting if he has to do that once in a while. Full marks to Davydenko; he will rue his double-fault in the tie-break and wonder what might have been, had he converted one of those 6 setpoints in the third set.

[eagle]

I think he has been riding on a high for long time and eventually there will be a dip in his performance. That's only natural granted his ride has been a storied and extended one.

His performance in the Masters Final and the AO so far have been error-prone and uncharacteristically Federeresque. Maybe he is pressing too much. Perhaps he is trying to incorporate Roche's teachings at inopportuned or ill-advised moments. Only time will tell if the Roche's part time coaching bears fruit for Roger.

The Roger/Mirka braintrust is a smart one. I'm sure he and Mirka confer and assess the pros and cons of having Roche on their team. They have the insider's view of what's going on. Only they know what's good for them.

r,
eagle

[D. Nelson]

....I don't agree with the above posts about Fed not 'needing' to come to the net so much.... If you look at the last set in general, and the tiebreaker specifically............THE time when he put on pressure were THE times he came to net.....He would NOT have won that set any other way.....

[Marius_Hancu]

Originally Posted by akj27

federer lost a set to davydenko, wahts the world coming to

give respect where respect is due
Davydenko is a great mover, the 2nd in the pros

[mdhubert]

I partially agree, I love S&V and Rafter is one of my past faves, but it seems that surfaces, racquets, all favor a baseline game today and it takes some guts and a hell of an approach to rush the net today. I miss a bit the '04 Fed without a coach, he was free and played more on an instinct mode which was very effective. However, in the long run, shorter points could benefit his longevity. Plus his "all court" game is his trademark. But it's very ambitious in today's game, and til today we haven't really seen the added value of Roche in Slams. So let's wait, but if he doesn't win AO or FO, he should fire him...

[Keifers]

Looking back on the whole match, I don't think Fed came to net too much. He did win one of his service games in the last set by serving up the middle medium pace and following it into the net. Drew a weak return and volleyed it away -- surprised Davydenko nicely.

I think he's playing a predominantly baseline game, especially at the AO (Rebound Ace). Certainly his volleys are not as good as they were when he beat Sampras at the 2001 Wimbledon. ('Course he doesn't get much practice in volleying in most of his matches.)

[tom-selleck]

good drama.... but i didn't think the play was that great.... OTOH, federer/haas was one for the ages.

i agree that fed's game seems somewhat off. i thought he should go to full-time coach, but maybe he should go back to no coach, although let's not forget he wasn't winning all these tournaments with ease a couple of years ago.

[West Coast Ace]

Have to respectfully disagree with BP on this. With Nadal looming, Fed can't get too comfortable hanging out at the baseline. And not hitting crisp approaches isn't Roche's fault - coming to the net on a good approach is a sound strategy; coming to the net on anything less is a Kamikazi Run. And the only way Fed will learn is to do it in matches.

[opiate]

Davydenko played impressive. And Roger isn't doing himself a favour by playing less than stellar, especially faced by a man on a mission like Davydenko. Well, everyone has a mission, but at times, I saw Davydenko having a bigger mission than Fed.

I don't think Fed played all that much net, S/V, etc. But he seems... lost, like he's unsure what shot to play or whether it's actually ill-advised. I know I'm definitely not one to advise him on anything, but... he looked... lost.

I guess this is the "one step back" everyone (including Fed) has to go through when learning a new trade (or at least a trade not one's own habit). I can only hope that it will lead to the "two steps forward" and not otherwise. There's a whole slew of bitter pills to be had before then.

Or maybe, (and this one would please Fed's detractors enormously), Fed is just regressing.

And props to Davydenko, most importantly, to be able to last that long (3 hours was it), on top of the four- and five-setters he had previously. And for him to somehow come out of it looking slightly less haggard than Fed.

[I.hEaRt.KeAbLe]

DAVYDENKO IS GOING PLACES.Keifers an idiot.that is all.xx

[West Coast Ace]

You guys are all forgetting the immortal words of Oakland/LA Raider head honcho Al Davis, "Just win, baby!" Fed keeps winning. Close only gets it done in horseshoes and hand grenades.

[Ronaldo]

Firing Roche will not change the fact that the shift to slower surfaces has created an equalizer between Fed and the rest of the ATP. Don't hate the player or his coach, hate the game.

[tom-selleck]

Originally Posted by Ronaldo

Firing Roche will not change the fact that the shift to slower surfaces has created an equalizer between Fed and the rest of the ATP. Don't hate the player or his coach, hate the game.

yeah, i was wondering how slow this surface is (announcers constantly remark on it), and that is a huge equalizer....

maybe fed will dominate wimbledon/USO, challenged at aussy and have a real tough time at FO.

i actually thought he played better today than vs. agassi (first 3 sets) at USO. i remember i got flamed for saying that maybe fed should get full-time coach (and now i wonder about no coach and going more back to his own instincts).

[Pancho]

[quote=BreakPoint]I'm watching the Federer-Davydenko match right now and what I noticed from this match and the Federer-Haas match is that Federer is better off staying at the baseline than coming in as often as he has been. Federer is so incredibly strong from the baseline that there's not really an urgent need for him to get to the net that much. It seems he's getting burned more often than not when he rushes the net off of less than perfect approach shots or when he tries to serve and volley. QUOTE]


You are quite right. I think Federer should fire Roche and get himself (Federer) as a real coach. He is his best coach. Remember that he won 3 out of 4 slams in a year all by himself without a coach! BTW, that is a record - no man has won 3 out of 4 slams in a year without a coach.

Federer can serve and volley and volley well but I think he is better on the baseline. Many South Americans and Spanish players can volley and serve and volley too but they play best at the baseline even in doubles play (like Virginia Ruano Pascual & Paola Suarez).