Semi-Pro
Hall of Fame
Another Bodo classic for your entertainment.
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Roger Federer is mad, and he's not gonna take it anymore.
That's the message he sent via his triumph at the Western and Southern Financial Group Masters on Sunday, and not just because he played a tough, hard-nosed match to snatch the title out of surging Mardy Fish's hands in three dramatic sets (maybe Federer wanted to give the fans their money's worth, after playing just seven games in back-to-back matches in previous rounds).
If you understand the passive-aggressive streak in Federer, you may have taken note of some comments Federer made after he joined Mats Wilander as a four-time champ in Cincinnati: "I had huge belief that I was going to win [Sunday] from the first point until the end. That sometimes can make a bit of a difference."
A "bit" of a difference? Come on, Roger, admit that you're showing more snarl than you have since the first month of the year, which was when you last won a title. Surely you'd grown just "a bit" tired of the suggestions that you've adopted a new role model in Novak Djokovic. We're not buying that pink shirt thing, either. Somehow, a light bulb went on over your head and you decided, "Hey, why am I letting these guys get away with this stuff?"
After slashing and smothering resurging Marcos Baghdatis in the semifinals, Federer said:
"The past year I've been very disappointed with my returning. I've played very safe the whole time and even on the first serve I haven't been able to read the players as much, which had been my big strength. That got me thinking.
"After Wimbledon, I had six weeks to work on a few things. On the hard courts, it's nice to play forwards and not always be defensive and let the other guy dictate. I'm happy that the hard work is paying off right away."
Federer has always played his cards close to his chest when it comes to what coaching help and advice he's received from the string of part-timers on whom he relies, but does anyone else think that maybe that recent stint with Paul Annacone (formerly the mentor of Pete Sampras) has had a little something to do with this new "No More Mr. Nice Guy" attitude?
Let's remember that Annacone was a chip-and-charge fool in his playing days and thoroughly dedicated his years as Sampras' coach to preaching the gospel of attacking and aggressive tennis. He constantly reminded Sampras to impose himself on his opponents; it drove Annacone bananas when Sampras screwed around, playing on his opponent's terms, just to prove he could do it and still win.
Federer also has been playing with his food -- for years -- and largely getting away with it. How often have we seen him just dump the ball back in play and trust his genius to take are of the rest? It has cost him dearly in some critical matches with his nemesis, Rafa Nadal. And he lost the U.S. Open final last year partly because he let Juan Martin del Potro take command of the tone and pace of the match. That just won't make it anymore.
Granted, Federer played all of seven games in his first two matches (a default and walkover) in Cincy. But they enabled him to hit the reset button on a game adrift and fired his mind just a week out from the U.S. Open. The guy still may not be playing great "full-flight Federer" tennis, but he's doing something better. He's winning.
Anger can make a bit of a difference, you know?
Source: http://espn.go.com/sports/tennis/blog/_/name/bodo_peter/id/5488371/no-more-mr-nice-guy-roger-federer
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Roger Federer is mad, and he's not gonna take it anymore.
That's the message he sent via his triumph at the Western and Southern Financial Group Masters on Sunday, and not just because he played a tough, hard-nosed match to snatch the title out of surging Mardy Fish's hands in three dramatic sets (maybe Federer wanted to give the fans their money's worth, after playing just seven games in back-to-back matches in previous rounds).
If you understand the passive-aggressive streak in Federer, you may have taken note of some comments Federer made after he joined Mats Wilander as a four-time champ in Cincinnati: "I had huge belief that I was going to win [Sunday] from the first point until the end. That sometimes can make a bit of a difference."
A "bit" of a difference? Come on, Roger, admit that you're showing more snarl than you have since the first month of the year, which was when you last won a title. Surely you'd grown just "a bit" tired of the suggestions that you've adopted a new role model in Novak Djokovic. We're not buying that pink shirt thing, either. Somehow, a light bulb went on over your head and you decided, "Hey, why am I letting these guys get away with this stuff?"
After slashing and smothering resurging Marcos Baghdatis in the semifinals, Federer said:
"The past year I've been very disappointed with my returning. I've played very safe the whole time and even on the first serve I haven't been able to read the players as much, which had been my big strength. That got me thinking.
"After Wimbledon, I had six weeks to work on a few things. On the hard courts, it's nice to play forwards and not always be defensive and let the other guy dictate. I'm happy that the hard work is paying off right away."
Federer has always played his cards close to his chest when it comes to what coaching help and advice he's received from the string of part-timers on whom he relies, but does anyone else think that maybe that recent stint with Paul Annacone (formerly the mentor of Pete Sampras) has had a little something to do with this new "No More Mr. Nice Guy" attitude?
Let's remember that Annacone was a chip-and-charge fool in his playing days and thoroughly dedicated his years as Sampras' coach to preaching the gospel of attacking and aggressive tennis. He constantly reminded Sampras to impose himself on his opponents; it drove Annacone bananas when Sampras screwed around, playing on his opponent's terms, just to prove he could do it and still win.
Federer also has been playing with his food -- for years -- and largely getting away with it. How often have we seen him just dump the ball back in play and trust his genius to take are of the rest? It has cost him dearly in some critical matches with his nemesis, Rafa Nadal. And he lost the U.S. Open final last year partly because he let Juan Martin del Potro take command of the tone and pace of the match. That just won't make it anymore.
Granted, Federer played all of seven games in his first two matches (a default and walkover) in Cincy. But they enabled him to hit the reset button on a game adrift and fired his mind just a week out from the U.S. Open. The guy still may not be playing great "full-flight Federer" tennis, but he's doing something better. He's winning.
Anger can make a bit of a difference, you know?
Source: http://espn.go.com/sports/tennis/blog/_/name/bodo_peter/id/5488371/no-more-mr-nice-guy-roger-federer
