Is Roger Federer's game declining, or is he just mentally 'out of it?'

[hpaiste]

Okay,

I am a die-hard Roger Federer fan, but after watching this semifinal against Djokovic, I'm really starting to question Roger. We saw a similar act like this back in 2008 (losing AO, FO, and Wimby, and winning USO), but this year Federer won AO, and had terrible results in the remaining three GS.

So is this apart of the Federer cycle? If so, that means next year he will win two GS like he did in '09. Maybe lose in AO, then regain his FO and Wimbledon crowns?

So here is the question: Is Federer honestly declining, possibly because of his age now, or is this all apart of his 'cycle?' Maybe I'm wrong: I'm sure he's having problems with his kids at night, maybe sleepless nights, sleeping alone?

And lastly, any guesses on Federer's result for the World Tour Finals?

Thanks for reading, please post!

 

[darthpwner]

Djoker played a great match especially the 2nd and 4th sets.

 

[miyagi]

He is just declining and aging you can't expect him to win everything, he has been doing great. If he can pick up another 1 or 2 slams that would be superb but I just see more and more players bringing it to him and him losing earlier and earlier in slams.

He'll still win others when he is on fire but just not like before.

 

[Tennisfans1]

Please don't blame Roger, Nole just played better

 

[Tempestuous]

Both are happening. Novak outplayed him, but when you have 2 MP, how can you say he didn't blow it. He played tentatively on those points, the worse thing to do, that's a decline in mentality. Also in general, when Roger would hit screaming FH's Djoker would get them back. Surely the pop on these FH's have declined.

 

[stormholloway]

It's mental for sure. The game is primarily mental at that level. What else has changed? Maybe he's a touch slower? But it's not like he wasn't able to get to balls. He just wasn't doing so well with them. I don't recall his serve really coming through for him in the clutch either.

 

[P_Agony]

He has to work on those sudden losses of focus. Other than that, he's fine.

 

[Tempestuous]

WTF was that losing sets 2 and 4 6-1,6-2??????? Fed played horribly in those sets. Where the hell did his serve go??????

 

[Legend of Borg]

Roger has different priorities now. Davydenko once commented how the guys at the top like Fed and Nadal are obsessed with training for the next tournament, not really having a personal life. All of that seems to be changing for Roger Federer who now has a family. It's unfair to expect him to excel at the top of the game like he did years ago. Slams from this year on will be few and far between. Or maybe I'm COMPLETELY off the mark. We'll see.....

 

[Jonnykobles]

He had match points against a young, fit and kind of prime Djokovic - who is one of the best hc players on tour.

I would exactly call federer out of it yet - tho alot of his play was dissapointing

 

[jsailorca]

And lastly, any guesses on Federer's result for the World Tour Finals?

Thanks for reading, please post!

Federer or should i say ******** (60s unforced errors!?) might make the finals there.

As the great Chick Hearn used to say, "His game's in the refrigerator! The door's closed, the lights are out, the eggs are cooling, the butter's getting hard, and the Jell-O is jiggling....

However, I do see another grand slam win before finally retiring.

 

[Duke_Grievousangel]

Of course he's aging. But it's not that Federer is incapable of playing like his dominating self. He just can't seem to sustain it. I mean, he's blasting first serves in inclement conditions, and then just can't get first serves in on the next gorgeous day.

Federer needs to start using the net more, getting comfortable with taking charge of points there and not falling into baseline rallies...especially on days when he's just not clicking.

 

[Dutch-Guy]

The competition is catching up on him.

 

[jsailorca]

maybe annacone can make him hit 2nd serve as hard as 1st serve.

 

[cy1126dragonamul]

Okay,

I am a die-hard Roger Federer fan, but after watching this semifinal against Djokovic, I'm really starting to question Roger. We saw a similar act like this back in 2008 (losing AO, FO, and Wimby, and winning USO), but this year Federer won AO, and had terrible results in the remaining three GS.

So is this apart of the Federer cycle? If so, that means next year he will win two GS like he did in '09. Maybe lose in AO, then regain his FO and Wimbledon crowns?

So here is the question: Is Federer honestly declining, possibly because of his age now, or is this all apart of his 'cycle?' Maybe I'm wrong: I'm sure he's having problems with his kids at night, maybe sleepless nights, sleeping alone?

And lastly, any guesses on Federer's result for the World Tour Finals?

Thanks for reading, please post!

Yo!
when you say federer's game is declining, it also means he's mentally out!!!
you're saying the same thing!!

 

[TnTBigman]

Fed showed his human side. Shanking and missing shots uncharacteristically when the match's "turning point" approaches. Exciting match though. Glad he was beaten. Let someones else win.

 

[Devilito]

Federer played about the worst match he’s played in his life and still took Novak to 5 sets. Figure it out.

 

[jack_kramer]

both. plus rafa makes his balls shrink to a very small size.

 

[ubermeyer]

mentally out of it
which wasn't even an option in the poll

 

[nadal_slam_king]

I wouldn't say Federer was tanking, because as it turned out he really only lost the matchpoints because of Djokovic's great shots. Subconsciously however Federer may not have wanted to win and he played poorly because of a feeling that he wouldn't have been able to win the Final.

 

[urban]

The loss could indeed be better for him in psychological terms. Given that long match, imo a fresh Nadal would have clobbered him anyway in the final. A loss to Nadal in a major final would have harmed his reputation much more.

 

[martini1]

Fed's game is about hitting great winners - low percentage winners for mortals. When he is behind he could serve his way out of trouble. The combination of these two cracks the opponent's mental game.

So when he is slightly off he is not making winners, shanking, and UEs are high.

Djoko is one the few in this world who can take advantage of a slightly off Fed and turn it into a mental advantage. Of course, he is also of the few who has the weapons to beat Fed.

Fed's mental is tough. At least he is the first in history to say aiming to win 20 slams with a straight face.

 

[powerangle]

It's mostly mental for Federer. How many matches has he lost this year where he had match points? I lost count. He's lots a lot of his clutch play and it isn't helping his confidence.

His physical game is still mostly there. Maybe a touch slower with his foot speed and a little less pop on his shots. Even these are probably partly attributed to his mental decline.

 

[stormholloway]

Roger has different priorities now. Davydenko once commented how the guys at the top like Fed and Nadal are obsessed with training for the next tournament, not really having a personal life. All of that seems to be changing for Roger Federer who now has a family. It's unfair to expect him to excel at the top of the game like he did years ago. Slams from this year on will be few and far between. Or maybe I'm COMPLETELY off the mark. We'll see.....

Actually, you're probably right on. What does Novak have going on besides tennis? Nada. And his tennis looks great.

Federer just looks like a rusty version of himself.

 

[MixieP]

Both are happening. Novak outplayed him, but when you have 2 MP, how can you say he didn't blow it.

No one would have beaten Novak on those two matchpoint. Not even Nadal. That's how well Djokovic played at that moment in time.

 

[MixieP]

Please don't blame Roger, Nole just played better

I tend to agree.

 

[stormholloway]

No one would have beaten Novak on those two matchpoint. Not even Nadal. That's how well Djokovic played at that moment in time.

Silliness. Federer played scared on both.

 

[nadal_slam_king]

Federer looked like he didn't want to win the match in the 6-1 6-2 sets, I mean how can Federer play that poorly if he was trying to actually win? It's unheard of, especially after playing such polished tennis all tournament. I think Federer flirted with the idea of tanking and then changed his mind later. On the matchpoints in 5th set Djokovic definitely outplayed Federer, that was for real.

 

[Jay_The_Nomad]

Two possible reasons why Federer lost to Djokovic:

1) Federer is still the same fella but Novak has improved & closed the gap.


2) Federer saw that Nadal had made it through to the USO Final

 

[AhmedD]

Fed should have gone on the offense on those two points, I thought he was going to dish out the chip and charge, or hit a drop shot out of nowhere, he shouldn't have gone baseline with Djoko, Djoker is not going to break mentally this time, he's more mature and experienced, I think Federer will learn from this.

 

[Dilettante]

I don't think his form or his potential have already declined. He may be close to 30 yo but he's in great shape and has an indeed effortless game. I believe he's mentally out of it a bit. Being father. having achieved everything and so, he's not as hungry as he was.

Other than that I didn't see signals of his capacities being lower. And around his prime he had trouble with Djokovic already so that's not new either.

 

[jones101]

He has to work on those sudden losses of focus. Other than that, he's fine.

This, plus Novak played some gutsy tennis.

 

[RFRF]

Federer played about the worst match he’s played in his life and still took Novak to 5 sets. Figure it out.

Amen to that!!!?

 

[Don Felder]

He has dropped off a bit, but it hasn't just happened this year. Over the last couple of years, we have seen him shanking a lot of balls. That trend continued today and for the rest of this year. I can't understand why he was hitting so well on the run but shanking those balls down the middle off his FH - I think that's mental.

Djokovic played ridiculous - he didn't miss a ball and was hitting huge. Gotta give props there.

I do think the prospect of playing Nadal here affected his play.

I think the biggest indication of the mental problems Fed was having was Djoker serving at 15-30, 6-5 in the fifth. Djoker hits a TERRIBLE drop volley that any decent 4.5 could have ripped a down the line winner on. What does Fed do? Moseys up there and hits it cross-court right back to Djoker (and didn't even hit it very hard at that). That was ridiculously bad. The match points were also, imo, indicative of his not being too excited to play Nadal, but to a much lesser extent. He hit some decent shots on those points and Djoker just stepped in and RIPPED it. I still think old Fed would have at least attempted to step in and rip one. Finally, the 5-5 service break was ALL mental. He played so bad that game it was almost hard to believe what you were seeing, including going for down the line forehands while he was already standing in the ad court alley.

 

[indyfob2008]

Many factors played a role in Roger's decline this year, on and off court. Top players like Novak are no longer intimidated by him. Roger doesn't have that same imposing presence. and I am sure it is a bit harder to motivate yourself when you have already broken the record for most majors. When he was 7 or 8 slams behind Sampras, I'm pretty sure his hunger and drive to win was at a different level than what it's at right now...especially w/ twins, wife, more jets and rolex commercials. Nadal and Novak are entering the prime of their careers, and like a younger Federer, they are chasing history and grandslam victories. this will be the next big rivalry. they just seem to want it more than Roger now.

 

[thalivest]

I voted the 1st option. Sorry *******s. Federer has gradually gotten worse as a player since March 2007. In 2007 it was enough to still win Wimbledon and the U.S Open but it wasnt pretty. And after that he was never a dominant player except for a stint in mid 2009 where he capatilized on Nadal's injury woes rather than any improvement in form (in fact it was a further regression still at that point).

He can still win the occasional Slam or Masters though. He will probably get back at #1 for a cup of coffee again while Nadal is injured at some point. He will never again be a dominant player though which in reality he hasnt been for 3 years now.

 

[Cfidave]

Federer had two match points, both of which Novak erased with unbelievable winners from the back court, just catching the line(s). He got lucky, Fed got unlucky, simple as that. Otherwise, we would be talking about how Fed beat Novak in yet, another US Open semi.

 

[Talker]

I had to vote the first option.
He won 2 tournaments this year and in others hasn't looked anything like his old self.
Though not a bad year for almost any player it's well below his normal level at just a few years ago.
He played a great AO this year and you can't drop physically that much in just months so it's probably a number of things, confidence, desire etc.

 

[THUNDERVOLLEY]

I voted the 1st option. Sorry *******s. Federer has gradually gotten worse as a player since March 2007. In 2007 it was enough to still win Wimbledon and the U.S Open but it wasnt pretty. And after that he was never a dominant player except for a stint in mid 2009 where he capatilized on Nadal's injury woes rather than any improvement in form (in fact it was a further regression still at that point).

Great point--but do not expect the usual TW Fed-cheerleaders to cite Nadal's injuries as a reason for his still shaky '09 performances.

He can still win the occasional Slam or Masters though. He will probably get back at #1 for a cup of coffee again while Nadal is injured at some point. He will never again be a dominant player though which in reality he hasnt been for 3 years now.

I too have said he will still the occasional major, but the glory days are long gone, others have figured out his game enough to exploit every weakness, and age has caught up with him in several, apparent ways--all combined means he is in decline, and there's no way for Fed-cheerleaders to spin this into something else.

 

[markwillplay]

his serve did not go anywhere, he played a guy who is a great returner and it put more pressure on him. He will be fine. He will have to come in more and more but he is able. I hope he throws caution to the wind and really starts to come in more and use all of his tools. the days of staying back and beating the best day in day out are probably over, but he has more game than that. He has not had to use it the last 5 years or so...he will now. Look forward to it. Great match yesterday and Joker showed great heart...they both did.

 

[matchmaker]

Well, Fed is at an age where a certain decline sets in. After such incredible series that he has set (GS record, consecutive semis record) it is normal that you fall back a little. But I think he still has the game to win a couple of slams. You know, that is life, he loses some of the tight matches he used to win.

 

[sunny_cali]

his serve did not go anywhere, he played a guy who is a great returner and it put more pressure on him. He will be fine. He will have to come in more and more but he is able. I hope he throws caution to the wind and really starts to come in more and use all of his tools. the days of staying back and beating the best day in day out are probably over, but he has more game than that. He has not had to use it the last 5 years or so...he will now. Look forward to it. Great match yesterday and Joker showed great heart...they both did.

Djoker is a great returner, however Fed's serve totally went away for no apparent reason. He clearly had one of his worst serving days.

Agree with the rest of the post - although I don't think Fed is going to win 20 GS - he probably has 2 left in him next year.

 

[kiteboard]

His tension is too low at 47lbs....

 

[TnTBigman]

I dont think his game is declining. It was only a matter of time for a few players to understand how to beat Federer. And that's with playing a more physical game than his.

 

[Limpinhitter]

Okay,

I am a die-hard Roger Federer fan, but after watching this semifinal against Djokovic, I'm really starting to question Roger. We saw a similar act like this back in 2008 (losing AO, FO, and Wimby, and winning USO), but this year Federer won AO, and had terrible results in the remaining three GS.

So is this apart of the Federer cycle? If so, that means next year he will win two GS like he did in '09. Maybe lose in AO, then regain his FO and Wimbledon crowns?

So here is the question: Is Federer honestly declining, possibly because of his age now, or is this all apart of his 'cycle?' Maybe I'm wrong: I'm sure he's having problems with his kids at night, maybe sleepless nights, sleeping alone?

And lastly, any guesses on Federer's result for the World Tour Finals?

Thanks for reading, please post!

Doesn't one lead to the other? IMHO, Fed is going through exactly what Sampras and Borg went through. This phenomenon of "kids" rising to the top at the age of 20 or less, has its drawbacks - early burnout. Fed has been on top for 6 straight years. Imagine the Herculean effort it takes to maintain the level of focus, with the depth of talent today, for 6 years. Federer has nothing more to prove. If he's not the greatest player who ever played, he's damn close. If I were him, I'd take a look at how successfully Kim Clijsters took time off and came back. There's no reason he can't do the same. He's only 29 for crying out loud. He's still a kid really.

 

[cigrmaster]

That was the worst I have ever seen Federer serve. If he served like he did the match before or even his normal percentage he wins in straight sets.

I believe his problems are all mental. His decision making on court is below his normal smart play. He still moves with incredible grace, he gets to balls no one but Nadal can get to. He just needs to focus better on the big points where during his run he was incredible.

 

[FedNad316]

Its simple....he is aging......

which translates into slower reflexes, more mental lapses, inability to hold concentration, more Unforced errors and shanking.No one can refute that there is an overall decline in his game

One thing about Fed is that he is so graceful elegant and talented that even at this current level he is able to compete and beat most if not all the young guns of today

 

[cueboyzn]

Federer had two match points, both of which Novak erased with unbelievable winners from the back court, just catching the line(s). He got lucky, Fed got unlucky, simple as that. Otherwise, we would be talking about how Fed beat Novak in yet, another US Open semi.

This is right on. Novak rolled the dice on those two points went for broke and it paid off. One netter and it would have been Roger in his 7th straight final. But as even Roger has said before, that's sometimes the way it goes. You can't win them all.

 

[cueboyzn]

Federer has nothing more to prove. If he's not the greatest player who ever played, he's damn close. If I were him, I'd take a look at how successfully Kim Clijsters took time off and came back. There's no reason he can't do the same. He's only 29 for crying out loud. He's still a kid really.

As Federer himself has said, the Men's tour is a different story altogether. The margins are smaller and it is much more brutal. if Federer did what Henin or Clijsters did he would probably never make it back to the top 1 or 2. He needs to stay there until he decides to retire that's the way he will add GS titles. Taking time off from the game would be a total mistake. All he needs to do is manage his schedule to make sure he stays fresh.

 

[Cyan]

He is almost 30.