Roger Federer clay Apparently, the red dirt loves Roger Federer more than Pete Sampras, but not as much as Rafael Nadal; the Spaniard has humbled him 13 times out of their 15 encounters on clay court. On the brighter side, the World No: 4 has a slight advantage over Novak Djokovic when it comes to head-to-head statistics on clay -- 4-3. Last time when they met at Monte-Carlo, the Swiss packed off the Serb in straight sets. It is a fact that Rafael Nadal is the single biggest challenge standing in way of Federer’s assertion in Roland Garros. His five losses, including four in the finals, underscores that argument. But this year, things are slightly different. Of late, Nadal seems to have lost his mojo on clay. The Spaniard had gone through tougher times before owing to injuries, but even then, clay remained loyal to him. His career has hit a new low this season where he failed to retain the titles at Monte-Carlo, Barcelona and Rome. Thanks to Kei Nishikori’s injury, it would have been a different story in Madrid too otherwise. Nadal’s dwindling form will undoubtedly help his rivals; they can capitalise on the ‘King of Clay’s’ vulnerability like never before at French Open. This could be the moment Djokovic had been waiting for so long; perhaps his best shot at completing the Career Grand Slam, or for Wawrinka to win his maiden title. But the question is, how favourable the situation is for Roger Federer. Can he win a second title here? No, the odds aren’t in favour of Federer for many reasons. The 17-time Grand Slam champion is considered by many as the greatest of all time; but he will also be remembered as the greatest player who could never nail down his one and only nemesis - Nadal. Their head-to-head records (23-10) bear witness to that. A major factor which contributed to the lopsided stats is Federer’s poor record against Nadal on clay -- 13-2! Whether or not Nadal is a better player than Federer is debatable, but he is hands down a better player than the latter on clay. For the aforesaid reasons, it will not be easy for Federer to drub Nadal in Roland Garros, even when his arch-rival is not playing his best tennis. Time is not in favour of Nadal for sure, but the Spaniard’s dip in form looks bad only when you gauge that by the ‘Rafael Nadal standard’. Even when he is not playing his personal best, he is still the ‘numero uno’. He has won a Masters title at Madrid and has reached the finals of the other two (Miami and Rome) - not a bad show if you analyse from a ‘non-Rafa’ vantage point. He has lost that magic for reasons unknown, but he definitely hasn’t lost his tenacity. On his first appearance following the birth of his twin boys, Federer suffered an early exit at the Madrid Masters second round to Jeremy Chardy - a player ranked 40th currently. His decision to play at the second Grand Slam of the year too wasn’t certain until the birth of his twins. All these, coupled with his infamous French Open jinx is likely to diminish his chances furthermore, regardless of Nadal’s slump. Things aren’t like how it was in 2009, when he won the title after Nadal’s shocking exit in the quarterfinals against Robin Soderling. Federer will have to cross many other hurdles like Djokovic and Wawrinka even if Nadal falls out of his way this time. Unfortunately, Roland Garros is not Federer’s sweet spot even though the Swiss maestro is desperately looking to end his Grand Slam drought. Hopefully, he will get a closure with the Wimbledon which falls on the next month. The odds will be then in favour of the ‘King of Grass’.
Posted on: Wed, 21 May 2014 17:17:34 +0000
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