Federer: Will He Ever Be World Number 1 Again?

[Conquistador]

The reality just hit me. Is it possible that Fed was crying because he doesnt think he will be world number 1 again? It hit me as well just now that I have come to think of it. With Fed being 27 and Nadal 22..it is a possibility that Fed may never jump back into the world number 1 spot. It is a shame to see a global icon like Federer not be number 1 anymore. It just really is shocking for me and is something I cannot get over. I try to model my life around this guy and his classiness. Whenever he goes down I tend to panic. But the reality is that he could never be number 1 in his career again. It is very sad.

 

[okdude1992]

thats kinda pathetic dude. its only a shame that fed isn't number one to him and his fans. nadal is just better at this point in time. he deserves to be number one. federer is good for the sport but why would you model your life off him? thats fanboyism to the extreme. and your panicking that he is going down? thats sad. and his post match interview wasn't to classy tbh: http://www.australianopen.com/en_AU/news/interviews/2009-02-01/200902011233411537875.html
the problem is that federer needs to stop thinking about how he deserves to be number one and accept that nadal is better then him right now. you should too. if federer just concentrated on himself it would motivate him to improve his game and really challenge nadal in the future

 

[Cyan]

No............................

 

[RFdaBest]

Probably not but I would be foolish to say he has no chance so I voted yes.

 

[federerdomination]

Yes he will return to the top - Esp if he can take back Wimbledon and retain the US Open

 

[plumcrazy]

I hope Fed gets to #1 again but I think tennis is just as good with Nadal at #1. It's only going to get harder for him to reclaim it. Remember Ivan Lendl is the only player to reclaim #1 after he lost it the previous year. Fed is one classy dude. But so is Nadal. Even if Fed doesn't get back to #1, lets all hope he sticks around and is a factor for a long time to come. It doesn't matter to me which one is #1 just as long as they keep giving us great finals like Wimbledon and the Australian!

 

[TopShelf]

I think if #1 was truly important, he would play in more tournys, so then gap would shrink somewhat. But I think for Fed, #1 is what he wants if he can beat Nadal in the Grandslams, and other big events.

Think Tiger Woods. The guy plays 12-18 tourneys a year, where as some guys will play 30 events, so there is a chance he loses his #1 overall but still wins 2 or 3 majors, so the same can be said her, kinda

 

[1st Seed]

Rafa could possibly break down physically.Roger plays effortless Tennis.Eventually my friends Rafa will deminish.Roger should be able to regain #1 but that's up to the Beast no.

 

[veroniquem]

I don't think he will regain #1 unless he can figure out how to beat Nadal in slam finals and he doesn't seem to be on his way to figuring it out IMO. Unless something unpredictable (like injury) happens to Nadal, he will be stuck at #2 or drop down if other players like Murray keep improving or if his confidence drops lower because of the AO final (I know that was against Nadal but it could potentially affect his confidence in general in future matches, we'll see)

 

[Prince_of_Tennis]

Rafa could possibly break down physically.Roger plays effortless Tennis.Eventually my friends Rafa will deminish.Roger should be able to regain #1 but that's up to the Beast no.

All that running is eventually going to catch up to his knees if they already haven't.

I haven't posted here in a very a long time.

 

[TheTruth]

He might. Anything can happen. But I don't think he will. But I also don't think that's where his focus should be. He needs to go after the slam total, not #1. Maybe he should adopt Rafa's attitude. "#1 or #2 don't mean nothing." If he focused more on himself and not such trivial things it might not affect his game so much.

Someone posted about Safina getting nervous at the prospect of becoming #1 if she won that match. So while she let that thought distract her, Serena got about the business of winning the match. That's what Fed needs to do, but instead he keeps running his mouth telling the world what he's going to do only to keep falling short in the end. It's unneccessary pressure he's putting on himself. IMO.

 

[GameSampras]

#1 I doubt since I dont think he has it in him to maintain that week in-week out consistency he had before. But who blames him when since he is chasing GS history. Im sure his focus is more on that. He definitely has 2-3 slams left him in IMO.

 

[oneguy21]

This current career slump is a test for Federer. Things happen for a reason.
If Federer turns out to be the GOAT in the end, it would be more epic since he achieved such a status in the face of such a daunting opponent.

 

[merovingian]

History shows that "Former world #1" is a hard tag to shake. Lendl is the only player to ever regain end of year #1. Even then, Wilander only held him out of #1 for only 20 weeks. Rafa's already been there for 25. Agassi interrupted Sampras for 30 weeks in 1995. And then there's the heroics of Connors in 82 and 83 to regain it, after an absence of 3 years. But he only held it for a very short time when he regained it.

Certainly, after a longish-to-long absence, there is only slim chance that Fed will get it back at any stage, let alone hold it for an extended period of time.

 

[bobbynorwich]

Yes, in his dreams.

 

[pound cat]

Rafa could possibly break down physically.Roger plays effortless Tennis.Eventually my friends Rafa will deminish.Roger should be able to regain #1 but that's up to the Beast no.

Or, Federer could break down mentally...which seemed to be starting on the stage of AO

 

[pound cat]

This current career slump is a test for Federer. Things happen for a reason.
If Federer turns out to be the GOAT in the end, it would be more epic since he achieved such a status in the face of such a daunting opponent.

If he is to be considered the GOAT, he must win a slam on all surfaces....until he wins RG, no way.

 

[Morrissey]

Nadal is a lock at the French. Given he won on his "supposedly" worst surface. On his best surface he'll totally demolish the competition, or whoever he faces. That would give him 2 slams (at least) for 2009. It's hard to take over #1 if you can't win more slams than them. The best Fed can hope for would be to sweep Wimby and US Open and that's not looking very very likely. I think Fed can win one slam this year. So no. He doesn't get #1 this year. And maybe not again. He'd have to dominate to take over #1 because Nadal has entered his peak. Looking at it now, probably not.

 

[Safinator_1]

Fed being no.1 again.... i don't doubt it but he has to start playing and winning like before if not then im afraid i hope he likes being less than 1st becuz thats the way to go

 

[P_Agony]

If he gets his act together mentally, yes, there is no reasonwhy he wouldn't. If he doesn't, he won't even stay number 2.

 

[abmk]

don't think so, but you never know ..

 

[Leublu tennis]

I hope Fed gets to #1 again but I think tennis is just as good with Nadal at #1. It's only going to get harder for him to reclaim it. Remember Ivan Lendl is the only player to reclaim #1 after he lost it the previous year. Fed is one classy dude. But so is Nadal. Even if Fed doesn't get back to #1, lets all hope he sticks around and is a factor for a long time to come. It doesn't matter to me which one is #1 just as long as they keep giving us great finals like Wimbledon and the Australian!

Thats really well put. Personally, I don't think he will regain #1 so long as Nadal is around. I don't see Nadal relinquishing his spot for another year or maybe two. Thats what I have been saying for a year now that Federer's time has gone. But I do see Federer staying right up there as his game is just fine for a top 5 player.

 

[Lotto]

It will depend on how he performs in the smaller tournaments. He needs to regain Wimbledon, retain the US Open and win about 3-4 masters series and the Masters Cup. I think if he is to finish as year end no.1 it will happen towards the end of the year.