LONDON — There seemed to be a certain order to the Wimbledon men’s semis. It wasn’t just that old school types were flying their flags. For the first time since ‘04 a Grand Slam quarterfinal had players from all four of the true blue Grand Slam host nations – Britain’s Andy Murray, American Mardy Fish, Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and Australian Bernard Tomic.
More than this, a very orderly table was being set — a table for four — the four leading players in the game – Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic and Murray – the same (bound to be classical) string quartet that reached the semis in Paris.
And as Federer swept to a two set 6-3, 7-6 (3) lead overTsonga, all was well in the the tennis universe. After all, Roger, a great front runner, had never lost a Grand Slam match when leading by two sets.
Surely, this was just another master class by the the six time champ, the man they compare with Muhammad Ali – deft jabs, light on his feet, athletic grace, a delight to watch, one of a kind.
Of course, his opponent, looks just like the charismatic Ali. Unfortunately, since reaching the ’08 Aussie Open final, Tsonga (who has struggled with injuries and mental lapses) has been known more for his singular fan-friendly charisma, than his light -up-the-record -book, bottom line results.
Not surprisingly the morning headline read “Tsonga Makes a Stand for Endangered Species – Flamboyant Frenchman Transports Us Back To The Days of the Showmen.”
But, at first, this wasn’t much of a show.
Tsonga was so listless in the first set that John McEnroe suggested that Jo Willie “may have to pull a Bartoli – jump around and get some life into himself.” When a helicopter flew over Mac quipped, “maybe that’s the French foreign legion trying to come in and help.”
After all Tsonga, the No. 12 seed, was being schooled: sweet cross-court lobs, Matisse drop shots, wristy forehands winners. Fed was sublime. So what else is new – a cool as a cat burgler. Swiss fans rejoiced.
But, beware the heavyweight with a punch. And Tsonga’s has an arsenal: huge serve, heavy forehand, fine movement for a big man. And as the Frenchman lifted his game. Roger noted, “He had basically good return games along the way in the third, fourth, and fifth…especially the third set, the break I get is very unusual. He chips back a couple; they stay in. He ends up picking a couple of sides and he ends up breaking me in a way I don't think he deserves as much.
But, look, he hung in there. I was controlling the match. Next thing you know, he just continued serving great.”
After Tsonga battled to even the match at two sets all, you still had to think Federer — the Grass-Court King with a record of 178-0 in majors when he was two sets up —would prevail.
But after Federer took a bathroom break between the fourth and fifth sets, Tsonga cracked three fearless forehands to score a critical break.
BBC noted that Tsonga “has no coach, no one to squash his spontaneity. He’s reveling in that freedom.” And with a certain sense of abandon he charged the net, blasted backhand returns, served fearless 130 mph serves and imposed himself on the mighty Fed.
Sure, the adoring English pleaded, “Go, Roger, go.”
The Swiss fellow never did.
His backhands flying wide (“I say that was a meter out,” said one lady from Cornwall), his returns faltering, his belief on the ropes, Roger never was able to mount a hearty counter attack. We expected him to figure a way to break back. But no. Somehow the 29-year old was missing a certain (“I shall not lose”) ferocity like we famously saw here against Andy Roddick, a steely will to force Tsonga to sing a different tune.
Instead, the Frenchman hit all the notes: “I was two sets down and I break,” he said after his 3-6, 6-7 (3), 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 triumph. “I did a good game of return and after that it was just amazing. I just played unbelievable, served unbelievable and now I’m here, I’m in semifinal and I can’t believe it.”
Many in the game are stunned that Federer — the winner of a record 16 Slams, the greatest player of all time – has not won a Slam since the ’09 Aussie Open final.
In Melbourne in January, he told the tennis world to relax and chill, let’s see where things pan out in six months. So flash forward six months. Just the other day he told IT that we have “to wait and see how this turns out to be. Because, again, (Wimbledon) could be a repeat of the Djokovic/Murray (Australian) final and then I was wrong. If it's not the case, then I was right.
At the end of the day, I don't care if I'm wrong or right. I know where my game is at. I know where Rafa's game is at. He was going for four Grand Slams in a row; he loses. It's a new year. I just struggle when it (conventional wisdom) goes from one extreme to the next.
We've all been playing well … the top four or five guys really, for a long time … It's exciting for tennis…It's nice that we're all playing good at the same time.
Today when asked about for a “State of the Roger” assessment – his take on his current place in the game, he offered flowing responses brimming with Federerian confidence.
“I'm playing well, he said. “I thought my game was plenty good enough this year to win the tournament. Unfortunately there's only one that can win it…I think Jo played an amazing match…Obviously, it's disappointing. But the game is there. I'm happy. I'm healthy. I feel much better than a year ago. That's very encouraging really. Even though I took a tough loss today, I don't feel discouraged in any way. That's key right now, to not let anything get to me. I'll work harder than ever…and hopefully come back extremely strong…It's pretty tough for anybody right now to win Grand Slams…That's what's tough in tennis. Knock‑out systems are pretty rough. But I think I definitely can [win a Grand Slam], yes. I wouldn't be here if it wasn't the case.”
Asked if this was the end of an era, Roger said, “No, I don't think so. Look, I played too good to – [it] wasn't a shocker second‑round loss in straight sets, some stupid match…It was a great match…To talk bad about this match would be unfortunate…There's no reason to look too far ahead, to be quite honest.”
But, to be honest, sports fans wonder if Roger can again wins seven matches at a Slam. And yes, sports do love to look ahead.
BUZZ: POST-SHOCK NOTES
OBVIOUSLY: Boris Becker, while commentating on Federer, who led Tsonga two sets to one, said “He really doesn’t want to have this match go into a fifth set.” … During the Novak Djokovic vs. Bernard Tomic semi, broadcaster Greg Ruesedski said “this match is like a roller-coaster, it has lots of ups and downs.”
WHOOPS THERE GOES A BILLION DOLLAR ROOF: There were three different leaks in the $150 million Wimbledon roof Tuesday and fans with $135 tickets had to be re-located.
HEADLINES
HEAT IS ON BUT MURRAY SAYS HE WILL NOT MELTDOWN
BIG LICKS – SABINE IS THE COMEBACK QUEEN
MARIA’S NOW THE SCREAM OF THE CROP
PETRA HAS THAT MARTINA KO PUNCH
IT’S NOT A “LUST-WIN” FOR MURRAY’S MUM
MERCY! OUR FAVOURITE TIGER MOTHER TURNS COUGAR
GO FIGURE: It was ’99 when there was last a Wimbledon finals weekend without Federer or a Williams
NIKE, HEAD, SONY ERICSSON, TIFFANY, COLE HAAN, CLEAR, TAG HEUR: Sharapova’s endorsement stable which reportedly is worth about $125 million.
OUR FAVE SHARAPOVA APPRECIATION: One British paper captured Maria’s serve as follows: “A moment of stillness purring with grace and seething with power, the apogee of Maria Sharapova’s service action – the ball tossed high and straight, the racket and right arm pulled back at full extension, the core muscles like a coiled spring – could be frozen and turned into a sculpture that would embody the beauty of the game.”
THE COOLEST STREAK NOBODY GOES NUTS OVER: Despite his loss today, it is noteworthy that Fed has reached the quarters of 29 straight Slams.
THE MEANING OF VICTORY FOR MARIA: Sharapova, who has won three Slams, is the only one of the four woman semifinalists to have advanced to the final four without dropping a set and is the only semifinalist that has previously reached a Slam final. But she hasn’t won a Slam since the ’08 Aussie. So we asked her, “You've had years of experience. Do you think lifting a Grand Slam trophy now would somehow have more meaning than before?” She replied, “Absolutely more meaning. When you're put into a situation where you don't quite know if you're ever going to not play tennis … Absolutely it would mean more.”
THE GRUNTING DIALOGS: We noted that an entire Victoria Azarenka press conference had almost finished without a single question on her (loudest in tennis) shrieking. So, in a serious way we asked: Does the grunting give you a good feeling on the exhalation? Does it give you a rhythm? A sense of fight? How does it help you? She replied, “How I started, when I was a kid, I was very weak. I needed that little extra power, extra push, to hit the ball over the net. I think that became a part of my breathing, a part of my movement. The Arizona resident replied, “Well, your body is a machine a little bit, right? It makes noises. So for me it's perfectly natural now. I really have to exhale with that to move, to hit the shot. It's not … [that] I want to piss somebody off. It's just natural me.”We followed up, noting that Monica Seles was once pressurized into holding back her grunt during a final here and lost and regretted that.
Azarenka said she hasn’t try to suppress her grunt. “I haven't really tried because that's why it's natural. I do it in tournaments. I do it in practice. No matter what.
You can see weight lifters when they lift the bar they do the noise. I don't think a lot of people complain in the stadium there, right?”
BEST DOWN THE LINE BACKHAND IN THE WORLD: Novak Djokovic
GO FIGURE: Sharapova and Sabine Lisicki, who battle each other in the semis, are both survivors of medical misdiagnoses.
SAMPRAS ON NADAL: “If you break down his game and what he’s been able to do on all surfaces, he’s only 24 [actually 25] and he’s got 10 majors, you do the math. Obviously, I think he’s going to pass me at some stage [14 majors] … The all-time record is a lot of work [16], and Roger obviously can continue to add to his list. But if Rafa is smart with his schedule and plans it out right, he can very well do it. We all know how hard he works.”
