Federer Deep Cuts

[Milehigh5280]

Thailand Open 2004 vs Paradorn Srichaphan. Both players are on the attack. The biggest noticeable difference between Fed then and now is his movement and forehand. And of course the hair.

I was in high school and just watched the Slams back then, so without youtube I would have no knowledge of this match. Post some of your favorite lesser known Federer matches here.

 

[NoleFam]

Good highlights. I always thought Paradorn should have done more and was more talented than his results showed.

 

[MichaelNadal]

Filmed with a potato
Isn't it crazy how we really have only had HD for a little over 10 years?

 

[haqq777]

It's always interesting to me to see how strokes evolve for top guys. To me, Fed's forehand looks different. But oh so scary good.

 

[BeatlesFan]

2004 Fed beats 2018 Fed 6-4, 6-2.

 

[Third Serve]

2004 Fed beats 2018 Fed 6-4, 6-2.

That doesn't count; he was too old

 

[metsman]

The Basel 06 match was even better. Super fun match.

 

[Robert F]

Just makes me think how many different generations Federer was able to play against. He always finds a way.
I still can't believe I was able to watch tennis on my old analog TV.
Kills me when Tennis Channel Splits screens to show two matches.

 

[Le Master]

Unreal shot making. Holy ****.

 

[MeatTornado]

Filmed with a potato
Isn't it crazy how we really have only had HD for a little over 10 years?

The picture may be ugly but at least the frame rate is silky smooth. That's more than you can say even for most 2019 highlight videos.

 

[MeatTornado]

My favorite part of this is him blowing the break point (on set point) and then immediately getting broken the next game while serving for the set.

Vintage Fed!

 

[cluckcluck]

Good lord the court speed is but a beautiful memory. Today’s conditions are laughable. I don’t think the lost-gen would do very well with the court speed of yesteryear.

 

[Mainad]

Good highlights. I always thought Paradorn should have done more and was more talented than his results showed.

Agreed. One of the biggest under-achievers ever for a player of his talent!

 

[Enga]

Even lesser known players had better groundgames back then. Today it's so dominated by lanky dudes who if they just barely try to go on the offense, they make an error, so they hit safe all the time and just try to win off serve.

Federer was also so obviously stronger back then. An easy tell is how he could step in from the baseline and give the ball a good whack, and have the ball still be rising as it hits the back wall. He has made massive improvements to his technique, especially in the serve, but back then he still had fundamentals better than most, with strength and speed to match.

 

[Deleted member 77403]

Sick. Look at the speed of that court.

 

[Tennease]

Sick. Look at the speed of that court.

So many fast hard courts in Thailand. Lol you should try the court with shiny paint on them lololol the ball hardly bounce! It slides off the court.

 

[ForehandRF]

Those hardcourts looked more like carpet surfaces in the 90s in terms of speed

 

[vive le beau jeu !]

Good highlights. I always thought Paradorn should have done more and was more talented than his results showed.

Agreed. One of the biggest under-achievers ever for a player of his talent!

The Basel 06 match was even better. Super fun match.

miss srichaphan... a really entertaining player with a beautiful game !

and this basel SF was indeed really awesome

 

[Red Rick]

Thailand Open 2004 vs Paradorn Srichaphan. Both players are on the attack. The biggest noticeable difference between Fed then and now is his movement and forehand. And of course the hair.

I was in high school and just watched the Slams back then, so without youtube I would have no knowledge of this match. Post some of your favorite lesser known Federer matches here.

Every old Fed match I just see him getting a fast ball on his forehand and stepping in and taking massive cuts anyway

 

[Poisoned Slice]

Sounds like a new brand of crisps.

 

[ghostofMecir]

Filmed with a potato
Isn't it crazy how we really have only had HD for a little over 10 years?

It really affects the way people who never saw older players live or at least on TV evaluate these older guys. Yes, the game ever evolves in both micro (the most usual) and macro ways, but put these same highlights in ultra hi-def and things look and feel so different.

 

[Mainad]

miss srichaphan... a really entertaining player with a beautiful game !

and this basel SF was indeed really awesome

Heartbreaker there for Paradorn. Up a break in the deciding tie-break but couldn't see it out. He lost all 4 of his encounters with Federer.

 

[Mainad]

Sounds like a new brand of crisps.

Or razors?

 

[ghostofMecir]

Good highlights. I always thought Paradorn should have done more and was more talented than his results showed.

His defense was suspect in many matches though lot of that was affected by little nagging injuries. He never had a very good 1st serve % and was always involved in so many 50-50 matches on all surfaces. Here, inspired in Thailand, his shotmaking is very, very good.

Honestly, I think with different coaching, and modern usage of analytics, he’d have much more success.

I met him at the US Open. Extremely nice guy who seemed quite a peace with himself.

 

[NoleFam]

His defense was suspect in many matches though lot of that was affected by little nagging injuries. He never had a very good 1st serve % and was always involved in so many 50-50 matches on all surfaces. Here, inspired in Thailand, his shotmaking is very, very good.

Honestly, I think with different coaching, and modern usage of analytics, he’d have much more success.

I met him at the US Open. Extremely nice guy who seemed quite a peace with himself.

I always liked his game and when he was feeling it, he could really take it to his opponents. He had some great scalps across his across his career too like Agassi and Safin, but I felt he should have done a lot more. But yea his shotmaking ability was very good.

 

[Poisoned Slice]

Or razors!

The greatest a man can get. Smooth technology that let's me get closer to the skin. This is special.

 

[Azure]

He was so nimble on his feet back then. Can't help thinking how in 2003-2004 people must have been seeing such a legend in the making and saying to themselves, what is he going to do with all this ability and talent.

18-20 years on, he is still playing. Genius.

 

[BeatlesFan]

He was so nimble on his feet back then. Can't help thinking how in 2003-2004 people must have been seeing such a legend in the making and saying to themselves, what is he going to do with all this ability and talent.

18-20 years on, he is still playing. Genius.

In 2003, I remember thinking Roger could possibly win 8 slams. I was hoping he'd win Wimbledon at least 3 times, but didn't expect that. So he exceeded my prognostications by a pretty big margin.

 

[DSH]

Even lesser known players had better groundgames back then. Today it's so dominated by lanky dudes who if they just barely try to go on the offense, they make an error, so they hit safe all the time and just try to win off serve.

Federer was also so obviously stronger back then. An easy tell is how he could step in from the baseline and give the ball a good whack, and have the ball still be rising as it hits the back wall. He has made massive improvements to his technique, especially in the serve, but back then he still had fundamentals better than most, with strength and speed to match.

mr fearhand!.

 

[DSH]

federer back then was the like mother nature: he could not be stopped.

 

[Azure]

In 2003, I remember thinking Roger could possibly win 8 slams. I was hoping he'd win Wimbledon at least 3 times, but didn't expect that. So he exceeded my prognostications by a pretty big margin.

Long time isn't it? I think it was around 2005 when everyone really started talking about him that I believed he would just win more than anyone else. 2003 was too early for me. It's the same with Rafa for me. I thought he would go on to win 5... All of them on clay

It's incredible how spoilt we are!!!

 

[-NN-]

Tennis was more fun to watch back then.

 

[Azure]

Tennis was more fun to watch back then.

Meh Nalby was a bit too sporadic in his performances. 2005 was actually a bit boring (except AO made incredible by Safin) if you are a casual fan. The best years were 2007-12 or similarly 1996-2000 from the Sampras era. Without competition, any sport becomes boring, unless you are a connoisseur of the game and would watch just to appreciate the game for the sake of the game. Roger was a joy to watch then, but competitively speaking, that was actually not too enjoyable.

 

[MichaelNadal]

Tennis was more fun to watch back then.

Idk about all that lol.
It felt more important BC more people were watching but I think tennis is better now

 

[-NN-]

Meh Nalby was a bit too sporadic in his performances. 2005 was actually a bit boring (except AO made incredible by Safin) if you are a casual fan. The best years were 2007-12 or similarly 1996-2000 from the Sampras era. Without competition, any sport becomes boring, unless you are a connoisseur of the game and would watch just to appreciate the game for the sake of the game. Roger was a joy to watch then, but competitively speaking, that was actually not too enjoyable.

2003 was exceptionally enjoyable competitively speaking and I'd take it over 2018-2019 in a heartbeat. Forgetting the competition, the tennis was way more enjoyable with the freedom of shotmaking and the more dynamic game. 2005 was sick. Federer played his most exhilerating tennis and Nadal rekt face. Tennis has been bull bollox for a while. It's only recently being invigorated by new styles coming through in dynamic and interesting ways from the current Next Gen. The last 3 rounds of the 2019 AO were also a laughable farce (talking men's tennis).

 

[-NN-]

Idk about all that lol.
It felt more important BC more people were watching but I think tennis is better now

Hell no. But I will say that if Trifecta can carry on being this great AND Next Gen steps up so we have a battle of generations where each take matches off the other, then I might have a new favourite era at least as far as competition goes in like ever. I think that's critical. We need Trifecta to keep GOATing but for them to be challenged by a genuinely exciting new generation of talents who can really take it to them on their own merits.

 

[Deleted member 77403]

2003 was exceptionally enjoyable competitively speaking and I'd take it over 2018-2019 in a heartbeat. Forgetting the competition, the tennis was way more enjoyable with the freedom of shotmaking and the more dynamic game. 2005 was sick. Federer played his most exhilerating tennis and Nadal rekt face. Tennis has been bull bollox for a while. It's only recently being invigorated by new styles coming through in dynamic and interesting ways from the current Next Gen. The last 3 rounds of the 2019 AO were also a laughable farce (talking men's tennis).

2003 was one of fav seasons ever and I didn't expect it after knowing Pete had decided to stop playing. Just shows...the show does go on.

 

[Azure]

2003 was exceptionally enjoyable competitively speaking and I'd take it over 2018-2019 in a heartbeat. Forgetting the competition, the tennis was way more enjoyable with the freedom of shotmaking and the more dynamic game. 2005 was sick. Federer played his most exhilerating tennis and Nadal rekt face. Tennis has been bull bollox for a while. It's only recently being invigorated by new styles coming through in dynamic and interesting ways from the current Next Gen. The last 3 rounds of the 2019 AO were also a laughable farce (talking men's tennis).

Oh I am not comparing it with the tennis the last few years. I always thought that in early 2000s, the WTA was far more interesting with great contests. Its not the competition but sport needs rivalries. Without rivalries, the sport becomes boring.

 

[-NN-]

Oh I am not comparing it with the tennis the last few years. I always thought that in early 2000s, the WTA was far more interesting with great contests. Its not the competition but sport needs rivalries. Without rivalries, the sport becomes boring.

Right now I'm excited about the future of both the ATP and WTA tours but it hasn't quite come to fruition yet, and my idealised vision may never come to be. Sport needs rivalries but it also needs change, dynamism and new narratives. Now imagine if some new rivalries can be forged through change, through the Next Gen stepping up and providing amazing matches with the current legends. That would be lovely. For the ladies it's a bit different, with Serena barely hanging on and no other all-timers but there's a lot of young talent and that's an exciting landscape to watch develop.

 

[Azure]

Right now I'm excited about the future of both the ATP and WTA tours but it hasn't quite come to fruition yet, and my idealised vision may never come to be. Sport needs rivalries but it also needs change, dynamism and new narratives. Now imagine if some new rivalries can be forged through change, through the Next Gen stepping up and providing amazing matches with the current legends. That would be lovely. For the ladies it's a bit different, with Serena barely hanging on and no other all-timers but there's a lot of young talent and that's an exciting landscape to watch develop.

Yes, agree on all counts. I eagerly await the new gen to step up. At the same time I don't mind the old guard as long as the tennis is interesting. That is all I care about.