Roger Federer
 | ||
| Country |  Switzerland | |
| Residence | Oberwil, Switzerland | |
| Date of birth | August 8, 1981 | |
| Place of birth | Basel, Switzerland | |
| Height | 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) | |
| Weight | 85 kg (187 lb) | |
| Turned Pro | 1998 | |
| Plays | Right-handed; one-handed backhand | |
| Career Prize Money | US$38,707,078 | |
| Singles | ||
| Career record: | 551-134 | |
| Career titles: | 53 | |
| Highest ranking: | No. 1 (February 2, 2004) | |
| Grand Slam results | ||
| Australian Open | W (2004, 2006, 2007) | |
| French Open | F (2006, 2007) | |
| Wimbledon | W (2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007) | |
| U.S. Open | W (2004, 2005, 2006, 2007) | |
| Doubles | ||
| Career record: | 105-70 | |
| Career titles: | 7 | |
| Highest ranking: | No. 24 (June 9, 2003) | |
| Infobox last updated on: November 20, 2007 End of 2007 season. | ||
Roger Federer /ˈrɒdʒər ˈfɛdərər/[1]; born August 8, 1981) is a Swiss tennis professional, ranked World No. 1 since February 2, 2004 for a record 202 consecutive weeks.[2] Widely regarded as the best player of his generation and among the elite group of all-time great male tennis players, he is considered by many as having the potential to become the greatest male tennis player ever.[3] In 2007, he was named Laureus World Sportsman of the Year for a record third consecutive time. Federer has won 12 Grand Slam singles titles (three Australian Open, five Wimbledon, four U.S. Open), 4 Tennis Masters Cup titles, and 14 ATP Masters Series titles. He has won three Grand Slam singles titles in a calendar year a record three times (in 2004, 2006 and 2007). He holds the male record of ten consecutive Grand Slam singles final appearances and is the only male player to have played in the finals of all four Grand Slam tournaments for two consecutive years. By winning Wimbledon in 2007, Federer also tied Björn Borg's open era record of five consecutive Wimbledon championships. Federer won the U.S. Open in 2007 and in doing so he set a new Open Era record of four consecutive victories.
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Personal life
Roger Federer was born in Basel, Switzerland,[4] to Swiss-German Robert Federer and South African Lynette Federer. He grew up in suburban Münchenstein, 10 minutes from Basel and borders France and Germany. As a boy, Federer was very emotional and admits to being kicked off practice courts occasionally. Federer was also a talented soccer player. He had considered becoming a professional soccer player but instead decided to choose tennis. He continues to support FC Basel, his hometown club and is a fan of Italian club AS Roma.[5] [6] When he was younger, he liked to watch Marcelo Ríos in action.[7] Federer especially liked Stefan Edberg and Boris Becker and has cited them as idols.[4]
Federer currently resides in Oberwil, Switzerland and is dating former WTA player and Slovakia-born Miroslava Vavrinec (Mirka), who retired from tennis in 2002 after a foot injury. The two met at the 2000 Sydney Olympics. Federer launched a fragrance called RF Cosmetics in October 2003.[8] He considers Swiss German as his first language, but also speaks French and English fluently[5] and conducts press conferences in all three. His favorite vacation spots are Maldives, Dubai, and Swiss mountains.[5] [9] He is also a good friend of golf superstar Tiger Woods. Federer is Catholic, and met Pope Benedict XVI while playing the Rome Masters in 2006.[10]
Roger Federer is highly involved in various charities. He established Roger Federer Foundation in 2003 to help disadvantaged people and to promote sports to young people. He is appointed as a Goodwill Ambassador of UNICEF from 2006. Since then, he has visited Tamil Nadu, one of the most tsunami-affected areas in India, and South Africa. He has also appeared in UNICEF public messages to raise the public awareness of AIDS.
Career
Federer started playing tennis at the age of six. [11] He began having group lessons at the age of nine and weekly private coaching when he was ten. He also played football until the age of 12 when he decided to focus solely on tennis.[12] At 14, he became the national champion of all groups in Switzerland and was chosen to train at the Swiss National Tennis Center at Ecublens. He joined the ITF junior tennis circuit in July 1996.[13] In 1998, in his final year as a junior, Federer won the junior Wimbledon title and the prestigious year-ending Orange Bowl. He was recognized as the ITF World Junior Tennis champion for the year.[14] In July 1998, Federer joined the ATP tour at Gstaad. The following year he débuted for the Swiss Davis Cup team against Italy and finished the year as the youngest player (for the year) inside ATP's top 100 ranking. In 2000, Federer reached the semifinals at the Sydney Olympics and lost the bronze medal match to Arnaud di Pasquale of France. Federer reached his first final in Marseille which he lost to Marc Rosset and was also the runner-up in Basel. He failed to make an impression at Grand Slams and Masters Series tournaments but still ended the year ranked 29th.
(All results and ranking history from ATP)[15]
2001
Federer's first ATP tournament victory came in Milan in February 2001. During the same month, he won three matches for his country in its 3-2 Davis Cup victory over the United States. He later reached the quarterfinals at Wimbledon, defeating four-time defending champion and seven-time Wimbledon champion Pete Sampras in the fourth round in a closely fought match, a victory that many consider to be the turning point of his career and thus ending Sampras' 31-match winning streak in the tournament. [16] He then lost to Tim Henman in the quarterfinal but finished the year ranked 13th.
(All results in 2001)[17]
2002
Federer reached his first ATP Masters Series (AMS) final at the Miami Masters, where he lost to Andre Agassi. He won his next AMS final in Hamburg. He also won both his Davis Cup singles matches against former world number ones (Russians Marat Safin and Yevgeny Kafelnikov). Despite early-round exits at the French Open, Wimbledon, and the U.S. Open and the untimely, devastating loss of his long-time Australian coach and mentor, Peter Carter, in a car crash in August,[18] Federer reached No. 6 in the ATP Champions Race by the end of the year and thus qualified for the first time in the year-ending Tennis Masters Cup. His run at the tournament was ended in the semifinals by then #1 seeded and ranked Lleyton Hewitt (who eventually went on to win the Cup).
(All results in 2002)[19]
2003
In 2003, Federer challenged for the top ranking in men's tennis. Federer began his Grand Slam campaign at the Australian Open where he lost to David Nalbandian in the round of 16. He then won 2 hard court tournaments in Marseille and Dubai. He also won a clay court tournament in Munich, but at his next Grand Slam tournament, the French Open on clay, he lost in the first round to Luis Horna. However, he won the tournament in Halle on grass, and in July, he won his first Grand Slam singles title at Wimbledon, defeating Andy Roddick in the semifinals and Mark Philippoussis in the finals, and losing only one set in the whole tournament (to Mardy Fish in the round of 32). He lost to Roddick and to Nalbandian in the Masters tournaments in Montreal and Cincinnati, respectively. As in the Australian Open, he lost to Nalbandian at the U.S. Open, again in the round of 16. He won on hard courts in Vienna and ended the year on a high note by winning the year end Tennis Masters Cup tournament in Houston, defeating Andre Agassi in the final. In a three-way battle for supremacy, Roddick captured the year-end No. 1 ranking over Federer and Juan Carlos Ferrero.
2004
In 2004, Federer had one of the most dominating and successful years in the open era of modern men's tennis.[20] He won three of the four Grand Slam singles tournaments, lost to no one ranked in the top ten, and won every final he reached. He won his first Australian Open title by defeating Marat Safin in straight sets, the win allowing him to succeed Andy Roddick as the World No. 1, a ranking which he has maintained as of December 2007. He successfully defended his Wimbledon title by defeating Andy Roddick, and won his first U.S. Open title by defeating Lleyton Hewitt. He finished the year by taking the Tennis Masters Cup at Houston for the second consecutive year, defeating Hewitt in the final. Federer's only Grand Slam loss of the year was at the French Open, where he lost to former world number one and 3-time French Open champion Gustavo Kuerten in straight sets. His win-loss record for the year was 74-6 with 11 titles. Federer was named the ITF Tennis World Champion[21] and Laureus World Sportsman of the Year in early 2005,[22] edging out the likes of Michael Schumacher, Valentino Rossi, Lance Armstrong, and Michael Phelps. Throughout 2004, Federer did not have a coach, relying instead on his fitness trainer Pierre Paganini, physiotherapist Pavel Kovac, and a management team composed of his parents, his girlfriend Mirka Vavrinec (also his manager), and a few friends.[8] In 2005, Federer hired former Australian tennis player Tony Roche to coach him on a limited basis.[23]
(All results in 2004)[24]
2005
Federer reached the 2005 Australian Open semifinals before falling to eventual winner Marat Safin in a five-set night match that lasted more than four hours.[25] He rebounded to win the year's first two ATP Masters Series (AMS) titles: Indian Wells (by defeating Lleyton Hewitt) and Miami (by defeating Rafael Nadal of Spain). He won his third Hamburg clay court title in May by defeating Richard Gasquet, to whom he had earlier lost in Monte Carlo. He then entered the French Open as one of the favorites, losing in the semifinals in four sets to eventual winner Nadal.
Federer successfully defended his Wimbledon title, winning for the third consecutive year by defeating Andy Roddick in a rematch of the previous year's final. Federer also defeated Roddick in Cincinnati to take his fourth AMS title of the year (and sweep all the American AMS events) and become the first player in AMS history to win four titles in one season.[26] He then dropped only two sets en route to his second consecutive U.S. Open title, defeating Andre Agassi in four sets in the final. He became the first man in the open era to win Wimbledon and the U.S. Open back-to-back in consecutive years (2004 and 2005). He failed to defend his Tennis Masters Cup title, however, losing to David Nalbandian of Argentina in a four-and-a-half hour, five-set match.[27] Had he won the match, he would have finished the year 82-3, tying John McEnroe's 1984 record for the highest yearly winning percentage in the open era.
(All results in 2005)[28]
2006
Federer won three of the four Grand Slam singles tournaments and ended the year ranked number one, with his points ranking several thousand points greater than that of his nearest competitor.[29] Federer won the year's first Grand Slam tournament, the 2006 Australian Open, by defeating Cypriot Marcos Baghdatis. In March, Federer successfully defended his titles at the Indian Wells and Miami Masters, and became the first player ever to win the Indian Wells-Miami double in consecutive years. Federer then reached two consecutive ATP Masters Series finals on clay, at Monte Carlo and Rome, but lost to Rafael Nadal on both occasions. At the 2006 French Open, Federer lost in the final to defending champion Nadal in four sets. Had he won the French Open, he would have completed a Career Grand Slam and become the first man since Rod Laver to hold all four Grand Slam singles titles at the same time. Although the clay Grand Slam title eluded him, he became one of only two then-active players who had reached the finals of all four Grand Slam singles tournaments, the other being Andre Agassi.[30]
Federer entered Wimbledon as the top seed and reached the final without dropping a set. There, Federer beat Nadal in four sets to win the championship. This was Federer's fourth consecutive Wimbledon title. Federer then started his North American tour and won the 2006 Rogers Cup in Toronto, defeating Richard Gasquet of France in the final. In the year's last Grand Slam tournament, the 2006 U.S. Open, he defeated American Andy Roddick in four sets for his third consecutive title at the Flushing Meadows. At the year-ending Tennis Masters Cup at Shanghai, Federer defeated defending champion David Nalbandian in one of his three round robin matches and Nadal in a semifinal. Federer then defeated American James Blake 6-0, 6-3, 6-4 in the final to win his third Masters Cup title. In 2006, Federer lost to only two players: Nadal in the French Open final, Rome final, Monte Carlo final, and Dubai final; and Andy Murray in the second round of the Cincinnati Masters. The Cincinnati loss to Murray was Federer's only straight-sets loss of the year and the only tournament out of 17 (Davis Cup excluded) in which he did not reach the final.
(All results in 2006)[31]
2007
Federer won his third Australian Open and tenth Grand Slam singles title when he, as defending champion, won the tournament without dropping a set, defeating Fernando González of Chile in the final 7-6 (2), 6-4, 6-4. Björn Borg at the 1980 French Open was the last man to win a Grand Slam singles title without dropping a set [32]. In February, Federer won his fourth Dubai Duty Free Men's Open title, defeating Russian Mikhail Youzhny in the final 6-4, 6-3. His winning streak of 41-consecutive matches ended when he lost to Guillermo Cañas in the second round of the Pacific Life Open in Indian Wells, California, after winning this tournament three consecutive years (2004-2006). At the Sony Ericsson Masters in Miami, Florida, Federer again lost to Cañas, this time in the fourth round in three sets. He was awarded four ATP Awards during a ceremony at the tournament, making him the first player to receive four awards during the same year.[33] [34]
Federer started his clay-court season by reaching his second consecutive final of the Monte Carlo Masters. As in 2006 he lost to second seeded Rafael Nadal. This time the score was 6-4, 6-4. On May 2, 2007, the "Battle of Surfaces," an exhibition event, took place at the Palma Arena in Mallorca. Federer and Nadal met on a tennis court that was half grass and half clay.[35] Nadal won 7-5, 4-6, 7-6 (10). Federer lost in the third round of the Internazionali d'Italia in Rome to Filippo Volandri 6-2, 6-4.[36] This defeat meant he had gone four tournaments without a title, his longest stretch since becoming World No. 1.[36] On May 20, 2007, however, Federer defeated Nadal on clay for the first time 2-6, 6-2, 6-0, winning the 2007 Hamburg Masters tournament, and ending Nadal's record of 81 consecutive match wins on clay. It was his thirteenth ATP Masters Series title, his sixth tournament win on clay, and the second time he defeated Nadal with a bagel set.[37] At the French Open, Federer reached the final for the second consecutive time but again lost to Nadal 6-3, 4-6, 6-4, 6-3. The day after the final, Federer announced that he was withdrawing from the Gerry Weber Open in Halle, which he had won the last four years. He cited fatigue and fear of getting an injury.[38] He therefore entered Wimbledon for the first time without having played a warm-up grass-court tournament. Despite this, Federer once again beat Rafael Nadal in a memorable final, 7-6, 4-6, 7-6, 2-6, 6-2, winning the tournament for the fifth consecutive time, a feat only before achieved in the Open Era by Björn Borg (William Renshaw holds the all-time record with six consecutive titles from 1881 to 1886). It was the first time since the fourth round in 2001 against Sampras that Federer played a fifth set at Wimbledon and it was his first five-set grand slam final. It was Federer's 11th Grand Slam victory, tying him in third with the greats Björn Borg and Rod Laver in number of men’s Grand Slam singles titles won.
Federer competed as the defending champion at the Canada Masters in Montréal, his first tournament since Wimbledon. He lost in the final to Novak Đoković 7-6, 2-6, 7-6. The next week Federer won the Cincinnati Masters Series for the second time, beating James Blake in the final. The victory was his 50th career singles title. Federer also won the 2007 US Open Series with this victory. In the 2007 U.S. Open final, Federer beat 3rd seed Novak Đoković in straight sets 7-6(4), 7-6(2), 6-4. En route to the final, Federer dropped just two sets; one to young American John Isner in the third round and one to Spaniard Feliciano López in the fourth round. Federer performed the exceptional feat of defeating the World Numbers 5,4 and 3 in successive straight set matches and he became the first male tennis player in the Open era to win four consecutive U.S. Open titles. Richard Sears holds the all-time record of seven consecutive U.S. Open titles from 1881 to 1887. It was Federer's 12th Grand Slam title, tying Roy Emerson. As champion of the US Open Series, Federer received a bonus of $1 million, in addition to the $1.4 million prize, for winning the US Open singles title.[39] He is the first male player to receive the bonus in the four-year history of the US Open Series.
It was announced in May that Federer and former World #1 Pete Sampras would compete in three exhibition matches between November 20 and 24, 2007. The best-of-three-sets matches were to be held in Kuala Lumpur, Macau, and Seoul. [40]
His next tournament was the Madrid Masters where Federer was the defending champion. However, he was unable to successfully defend his title after losing to David Nalbandian in the finals 6-1, 3-6, 3-6 continuing the trend of no player being able to defend their title. The defeat for Federer was his first on an indoor hardcourt since Nalbandian got the better of him in the Masters Cup two years ago.
On October 28 Federer won his home tournament in Basel for the second consecutive year by beating the Finn Jarkko Nieminen in the final 6-3, 6-4. The win guaranteed Federer the year-end No.1 ranking for the fourth consecutive year. It also means that he will complete 200 consecutive weeks at No.1 and makes a target of 208 consecutive weeks (4 years) a strong possibility.
Federer then played the Paris Masters, where nemesis David Nalbandian defeated him again in the third round, 6-4, 7-6(3), to leave their head-to-head record at 8-8. Nalbandian is now among a small group of players who have either a positive or equal win/loss record against Federer.
Federer's round robin group at the Tennis Masters Cup was announced on 7 November 2007 and consisted of Nikolay Davydenko, Fernando González, and Andy Roddick, players who Federer had excellent head-to-head records against. In Federer's opening match, he surprisingly lost to the seventh-ranked González 6-3, 6-7(1), 5-7, marking his first loss against the Chilean as well as his first ever loss in the round-robin stage of the Masters Cup. Federer composed himself to win his second RR match, against Davydenko, 6-4, 6-3; and reached semi-finals by beating Roddick 6-4, 6-2. Federer reached the final after crushing Spanish rival Rafael Nadal 6-4, 6-1, taking just 59 minutes to score his most emphatic win over the world number two to date. Federer then went on to win his fourth Masters Cup title in five years by beating David Ferrer in a lopsided final 6-2, 6-3, 6-2. The number six seed was defeated in just an hour and 38 minutes as Federer sealed a fourth Masters Cup success, adding to victories in 2003, 2004 and 2006. A 53rd career title and eighth of the year, the win put Federer just one behind Pete Sampras and Ivan Lendl who are tied at five Masters Cup victories each.
As he took part in more than 8 Masters Series, including both fall events, Federer collected $1.5 million from the ATP Masters Series bonus pool, which ensured that he would surpass his previous year-end prize money record by taking his season haul to $10,130,620.
On the 19th November 2007 in an exhibition match between the giants of tennis present and past, Federer defeated Pete Sampras in straight sets, 6-4, 6-3. The match in Seoul was the first of three Asian exhibitions the two legends played. Sampras brought cheers from the crowd at Seoul's Olympic Tennis Arena as he fired down two fierce aces in his first service game. Sampras then proceeded to break his opponent's serve and then moved 4-2 ahead courtesy of a delightful drop shot. "I feel pretty good," Sampras told Korean television after the game. "I made it competitive, which was my goal. Obviously Roger is the best player in the world and I retired five years ago. I am grateful that he invited me." Roger was equally happy with the workout: "Pete was one of my idols growing up and it's great to play him," Roger said. "It wasn't easy for me, it wasn't easy for him as he's been retired five years. I am number one and everyone expects me to win." [41] The pair met again in Kuala Lumpur before heading to Macau.
- Results of the "Clash of the Times":
- Seoul, South Korea: Federer d. Sampras, 6-4, 6-3.
- Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia: Federer d. Sampras, 7-6, 7-6.
- Macau, China: Sampras d. Federer 7-6, 6-4.
Playing style
Federer has a versatile, all-court playing style and can hit all of the fundamental shots with a high degree of proficiency. He is an adept volleyer and an excellent baseliner who can dictate play with precise groundstrokes from both wings.[42] Federer uses fairly conventional grips. His forehand is between a modern eastern and mild semi-western as his hand is about halfway underneath the racquet, allowing for either a flat or topspin shot. He hits through his forehand on a straighter plane and finishes his swing wrapped around his back, which is not the typical technique of following through after contact and "scratching your back" with the elbow pointing skyward and the racquet coming over the shoulder.[43] He also can generate extreme top-spin with the shot, allowing him to open up cross-court angles while still hitting the ball with pace. David Foster Wallace has described the exceptional speed, fluidity and brute force of this forehand motion as "a great liquid whip," [44] while John McEnroe has referred to it as "the greatest shot in our sport" on numerous occasions. [45] Federer plays with a one-handed backhand, which has improved over the last few years. Although critics and coaches consider his backhand as his weaker side, it has developed into one of the best in the game. He has an excellent slice which knifes through the court with great pace and throws off opponents, but can also fire great top-spin shots that seem to catch the baseline as if magnetically drawn to it. Federer tends to hit his groundstrokes early, while the ball is still on the rise, much like Andre Agassi did. While this requires excellent reactions and footwork, it means that Federer hits his groundstrokes closer to the net than most of his opponents. This reduces the reaction time of his opponents and allows him to hit the sharply angled winners that are a trademark of his game.[44]
His serve is difficult to read because he tosses the ball in the same spot no matter where he intends to serve it and he turns his back to his opponents during his motion. His first serve is typically around 190 km/h (118 mph).[46] His second serve usually has a heavily kicked delivery. Federer generally serves with placement and precision, but on occasion he will hit a powerful serve to keep his opponents off balance. His footwork, balance, and court coverage are exceptional and he is considered to be one of the fastest movers in the game. Unlike most players who take many small steps when approaching the ball, like Jimmy Connors, Federer takes long fluid strides. He can hit a strong shot on the run or while backpedaling, allowing him to switch from defense to offense. Federer's relaxed, smooth playing style belies his aggressive and opportunistic tactics as he constructs points that allows him to hit winners with his powerful groundstrokes. Federer is capable of performing in high pressure situations, often saving break, set or match points during crucial times in a match.
Equipment and apparel
Federer currently plays with a customized Wilson K Factor KSix-One Tour 90 Racquet[47] and it is characterised by its smaller hitting surface (90 square inch area), heavy weight (12.5 oz strung weight), and thin beam (18 mm beam). Some speculate that it is a custom slightly bigger mold of the Wilson ProStaff Original 6.0 85 used by Pete Sampras. Federer strings his racquets at a relatively loose tension (53-60 pounds depending on his opponent and surface) with natural gut main strings and co-poly cross strings .[48] This allows him to return balls at higher velocity with less effort but makes consistent accuracy more difficult. Federer's official past racquets include Wilson nCode nSix-One Tour 90, Wilson ProStaff Tour 90, and Wilson ProStaff Original 6.0 85. Federer endorses Wilson tennis racquets and accessories and Nike apparel and footwear. For the 2006 championships at Wimbledon Nike made a jacket which had a crest with three tennis racquets symbolising the three Wimbledon Championships that he had previously won. This jacket was also updated for 2007, with four rackets.[49] He also has endorsement deals from various other companies, many of them being Swiss.[50] He also endorses Gillette with French football star Thierry Henry, American golfer Tiger Woods and Indian cricketer Rahul Dravid.[51] Federer is one of the few tennis players who endorse Rolex.
[edit] Records
Roger Federer holds a number of records in tennis history, the most prominent of which is that he has won the Australian Open, Wimbledon and the U.S. Open in the same year three times in 2004, 2006 and 2007. He has surpassed a number of long-standing records including Jimmy Connors' record of 160 consecutive weeks as #1 men's player in the world and Steffi Graf's record of 186 weeks as #1 singles player in the world. He equaled Björn Borg's open-era record of 5 consecutive Wimbledon titles in 2007 and has the open-era record of most consecutive US Open titles (4) in 2007. He is the only player ever to win the Wimbledon and U.S. Open singles titles back-to-back for four consecutive years.
Awards
- Main article: Awards won by Roger Federer
Federer has won numerous awards during his tennis career. His most significant achievement was winning his third consecutive Laureus World Sportsman of the Year award, in 2007. And of course, many view Federer as the greatest player ever to step onto a tennis court; that alone is a record many players can never hope to attain.
