Fed’s best level at French Open?

Best version of Fedr at French Open

  • 2006

    Votes: 34 30.4%
  • 2007

    Votes: 15 13.4%
  • 2009

    Votes: 4 3.6%
  • 2011

    Votes: 59 52.7%

  • Total voters
    112

Hitman

Bionic Poster
Best ever level at RG IMO was 2011. He just didn't have the same physical stamina of previous years.

It is often said that RG 2011 semi level performance is only surpassed by Rome 2006 final, nothing at RG has come close to being better than that 2011 performance.
 

daggerman

Hall of Fame
If anything the 2011 RG Fed is the most overrated Roger ever. He did great to wind back the clock that day in the SF against Djokovic, but I've never understood when it's said that's the best he's ever played on clay. Outside of 09 it was easily his "greatest" win but that doesn't mean it was actually his best quality of play. I don't see anything that 11 Fed did better than 05-07 Fed. If he was really playing better then he would have actually beaten Nadal in the final, who was decidedly worse that year than his 05-08 wins.

Put 2011 Novak into say 2006 and that Fed beats him just the same as 2011 did.

Eh, that 2011 match was way too closely contested to use it as some ground-level truth from which to speculate about hypothetical matches. Djokovic could just as well have won that match. He just didn't, and that's tennis. And yes, that applies to matches where Djokovic ended up beating Federer, too.
 

DSH

Talk Tennis Guru
I think you have it exactly backwards. I’ve never seen anyone praise Fed’s level at 09 and many people talk about the 2011 semi like it was the best match Fed has ever played

Not only the semi, his overall level was higher at RG in 2011 than in 2009.
He was very fortunate not to lose against Acasuso in that edition, he could have quietly gone home early.
 

tudwell

G.O.A.T.
Not only the semi, his overall level was higher at RG in 2011 than in 2009.
He was very fortunate not to lose against Acasuso in that edition, he could have quietly gone home early.
I’m not saying 09 is better than 11. I don’t think that at all. With the exception of possibly 08, 09 was Fed's worst run to the FO final. I’m just saying I don’t think people overrate 09 or underrate 11. If anything, 11 has been mythologized beyond its due.
 

zagor

Bionic Poster
I think you have it exactly backwards. I’ve never seen anyone praise Fed’s level at 09 and many people talk about the 2011 semi like it was the best match Fed has ever played

Yeah, if anything his 2009 FO SF/F matches against Delpo and Soderling are very underrated, Fed was near flawless in the final and had to dig really deep against a zoning Delpo who was taking the ball early and hitting huge off both wings (back when Delpo had a BH),
 

FedForGOAT

Professional
06 - 07 are close in my mind. It’s been a few years, but iirc, federer was somewhat shaky in the earlier rounds in 07, but made up for it in the final (other than on 16 bps:cry:).
I recall people saying that in the 06 final his bh let him down and that in 07 his fh did, and I tend to agree with the sentiment.

2011 was also quite impressive, but the conditions were pretty different (see isner vs nadal), so it’s hard to compare.

from the eye test, I also thought 2019 was super impressive, but it did involve a lot of ball bashing that led to quicker errors.

this is where I wish we had access to advanced stats a la baseball. I would love to compare groundstroke speeds and spins.
 

abmk

Bionic Poster
Best ever level at RG IMO was 2011. He just didn't have the same physical stamina of previous years.

It is often said that RG 2011 semi level performance is only surpassed by Rome 2006 final, nothing at RG has come close to being better than that 2011 performance.

by those who didn't pay enough attention IMO.

RG 2009 final vs Sod
Hamburg 2002 final vs Safin
Hamburg 2004 semi vs Hewitt

all better than RG 11 semi
 

abmk

Bionic Poster
Not sure Fed was that close to losing to Del Potro? I thought Delpo played really well. I'd say the 2011 SF was better than the 2009 SF, but I think the 2009 F was one of his very best clay matches - so on aggregate I think 2009 might be a bit higher. Even accounting for the fact that Nadal was a lot tougher than the Soderling that turned up to the final.

2009 RG final > 2011 RG semi > 2009 RG semi > 2011 RG final.
So yep, you are right, IMO.
 

abmk

Bionic Poster
If we are not strictly talking about Roland Garros performances, I think 2007 Hamburg Masters was the best Federer on clay. He just kept beating those Spainiard clay masters. Ferrero, Ferrer, Moya and Nadal. Sure he lost one set each against other than Ferrero. The hype around Federer ending Nadal's 81 match winning streak on clay with a bagel was just outstanding.

Actually 2007 Hamburg was his worst run at Hamburg on the road to making the final.
02, 04, 05, 08 were all better.
07 Hamburg final last 2 sets were brilliant though.
 

abmk

Bionic Poster
As far as thread question goes:

06 as far as general peak level
07 as far as clay specific peak level goes
11 as far as consistency from start to finish goes in the given conditions
09 as far as QF-F goes (played excellent vs Monfils, good enough to beat a hot delpo and GOATed vs Soderling)

05 is 5th best. followed by 08/10.
 

abmk

Bionic Poster
Yeah, if anything his 2009 FO SF/F matches against Delpo and Soderling are very underrated, Fed was near flawless in the final and had to dig really deep against a zoning Delpo who was taking the ball early and hitting huge off both wings (back when Delpo had a BH),

fed played excellent in the QF vs Monfils in the 2009 QF as well.
Its really only the 2 matches where he was shaky - Acusaso in 2R and Haas in 4R.
 
D

Deleted member 779124

Guest
by those who didn't pay enough attention IMO.

RG 2009 final vs Sod
Hamburg 2002 final vs Safin
Hamburg 2004 semi vs Hewitt

all better than RG 11 semi
Don't think any of the 3 opponents were anywhere near as good 2011 Djokovic was on that day so I wouldn't any of rate them outright higher.
 

abmk

Bionic Poster
Don't think any of the 3 opponents were anywhere near as good 2011 Djokovic was on that day so I wouldn't any of rate them outright higher.

already taken into consideration with 2 TB sets vs Djoko, one arguably below par or meh set in RG 11 semi in faster conditions as opposed to being near flawless in those 3 matches& being physically better.
 
D

Deleted member 779124

Guest
already taken into consideration with 2 TBs vs Djoko, one arguably below par or meh set in RG 11 semi as opposed to being near flawless in those 3 matches& being physically better.
I think Djokovic would probably be expected lower the level down and the dip came 2 sets to love up but fair enough I guess.
 

kishnabe

Talk Tennis Guru
Should have won in 2007 (5 million BP chances against Nadal) and 2011 (Nadal weakest FO win, Classic Federer bottles single or double break lead to Nadal).
 

abmk

Bionic Poster
I think Djokovic would probably be expected lower the level down and the dip came 2 sets to love up but fair enough I guess.

yeah, but he had to save 2 SPs in set1 vs djoko and was down a MB in the TB. He was clutch to get that set, but a little too close for comfort.
Contrast to the TB vs Sod for example. 4 aces, 2 winners and an error forced. that's literally unplayable.
 

teotjunk

Rookie
Does anyone think Federer would have won any of the French Open matches against Nadal if Nadal was not left handed?
 
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Fedforever

Hall of Fame
Best ever level at RG IMO was 2011. He just didn't have the same physical stamina of previous years.

It is often said that RG 2011 semi level performance is only surpassed by Rome 2006 final, nothing at RG has come close to being better than that 2011 performance.

In the Christopher Clarey book Paul Annacone says his biggest regret as Federer's coach was that he didn't give him enough belief in his ability to win that 2011 Final
 
R1 to QF:
06
11
07
09

SF:
11
06
09
07

F:
09
07
11
06

Rightfully, 06 was his best year in terms of peak displayed across the tournament, as well as overall clay peak across MC + Rome + RG, but also the year he played his weakest final out of 06/07/09/11.

Overall hard to make an unanimous call, all runs had something of their own.
 

Fiero425

Legend
Does anyone think Federer would have won any of the French Open matches against Nadal if Nadal was not left-handed?

Supposedly that was the reason Nadal was coached to play left-handed! It is an advantage! If he had played right-handed, he would be just another clay courter IMO! :unsure: ;)
 

Gazelle

G.O.A.T.
The opinion that Fed got old in 2008 is also a marginal one. Many still say that Fed was still in his overall prime in 2008-2009 (though not at his absolute best) and some even extend this to 2012. The fact is, using 2004-2007 as the bar for Fed’s prime is pretty strict. If we applied the same criteria to Nadal, he would technically only have two prime seasons (2010 and 2013). There needs to be some wiggle room.

Besides, competition had already begun to improve by 2007 with Nadal becoming more dominant at RG and making strides on grass, and Djokovic establishing himself as a top player. It didn’t magically occur from the transition of one year to the next. And it needs to be said that Fed did indeed drop off a bit from 2007-2008 in addition to the better competition. The difference was most notable below the Slams where he was losing to all sorts of random players; even guys like Roddick whom he used to dominate. He was definitely much better at the Slams that year, I’ll give you that.

It's not the same bar if Nadal only gets 2 years to Fed 4.

If Fed 2004-2007, then Nadal 2008, 2010, 2011, 2013.
 

sliceroni

Hall of Fame
2006 Rome final was the highest level I’ve seen him on clay, it was ridiculous. That loss temporarily wrecked me as I thought it would be his first win vs Nadal on clay and the tables would turn. At RG, toss up but in 2011 him stopping Nole’s winning streak was pretty significant.
 

T007

Hall of Fame
I thought 2006 would be the obvious choice but Fed played smarter in 2011. He really should have won first set against Nadal (had set point and missed dropshot by inches).
Had he didn't choked on those set points that could have been atleast a 5 setter. May be Federer with the win.
 

zagor

Bionic Poster
fed played excellent in the QF vs Monfils in the 2009 QF as well.
Its really only the 2 matches where he was shaky - Acusaso in 2R and Haas in 4R.

Didn't he play Monfils in 2011 QF as well? That one I remember actually, thought Fed played great and was quite aggressive. Their 2009 QF just doesn't register, I can't remember the match.

Agree with your posts in this thread regarding 2009 FO final, quite an underrated performance. That 2nd set was one of the best tiebreaks I've ever seen Fed play (maybe even the best, considering what was on the line).

On the whole 2009 was the last year I felt Fed was a beast from the baseline. Later he morphed into this first strike player who's very dependent on his serve which is how many erroneously remember him now.
 

abmk

Bionic Poster
Didn't he play Monfils in 2011 QF as well? That one I remember actually, thought Fed played great and was quite aggressive. Their 2009 QF just doesn't register, I can't remember the match.

Agree with your posts in this thread regarding 2009 FO final, quite an underrated performance. That 2nd set was one of the best tiebreaks I've ever seen Fed play (maybe even the best, considering what was on the line).

On the whole 2009 was the last year I felt Fed was a beast from the baseline. Later he morphed into this first strike player who's very dependent on his serve which is how many erroneously remember him now.

Yeah, fed played Monfils in RG 2011 QF as well and played excellent in that as well - just like RG 2009 QF.
Re: baseline stuff, well that was his last prime year. But there were shades of baseline brilliance in USO 11 to Cincy 12 and big parts of 17 as well.
 

aman92

Legend
I would still say 2006..because that was the peakest of peak Federer without the as much mental baggage of his losses to Nadal and had come a whisker away from beating him a few weeks ago. When he blitzed through the first set, my 14 year old self couldn't fathom Baby Nadal coming back from that - remember also that Federer had never lost a GS final upto that point.

2011,Federer played a flawless semi final but I was still pretty confident of Rafa beating him in the final just because he had owned him at RG since 2005 and despite what people say was in pretty great form throughout the year, beating everyone not named Djokovic
 

mike danny

Bionic Poster
To give a more elaborate answer:

2006 was his best BO5 sets match against Rafa (the Rome final).

2007 was his best FO tourney.

2011 was his best FO win (the semi).
 
D

Deleted member 779124

Guest
yeah, but he had to save 2 SPs in set1 vs djoko and was down a MB in the TB. He was clutch to get that set, but a little too close for comfort.
Contrast to the TB vs Sod for example. 4 aces, 2 winners and an error forced. that's literally unplayable.
I will take your word for it :)

What do you think was the best final Federer played vs Rafa in RG?
 
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