Gone are the days that Roger Federer dominated the world tennis circuit. Gone are the days the other players cowered in fear knowing that whatever they tried against Federer, it wouldn't be enough.
The way things now are, Federer is very, very good...but not necessarily better than anyone else.
That was proven today as Roger Federer today lost a match for the first time ever, after being up two sets to none.
Jo-Wilfried Tsonga made the immortal Federer look awfully mortal, winning their quarterfinal match 3-6, 6-7, 6-4,6-4,6-4.
Federer, with 6 Wimbledon titles in the books, was looking to tie Pete Sampras' record of 7. But it wasn't to be as Tsonga played a near perfect final 3 sets.
With the ascension of Rafael Nadal and Novic Djokovic, Federer's days of dominance may finally have come to an end. We'll see if he can find enough game to recover and in some ways catch up to the field that has finally caught him.
First, Roger Federer loses to 12-seed Tomas Berdych in four sets... 6-4, 3-6, 6-1, 6-4...
Until Wednesday, Federer was 51-1 at the tournament since the start of the 2003 edition. Since winning his 2010 title at the Australian in January, Federer has been to the semifinals at only three of eight tournaments.
Then the top-ranked Williams sisters lose in doubles They were looking for a fifth consecutive Grand Slam title in doubles, but were beaten 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 by Russians Elena Vesnina and Vera Zvonareva.
The Williamses climbed to No. 1 in doubles for the first time after winning the French Open. They were bidding for their 13th major...
And THEN, the Bryan brothers lose in men's doubles. Bob and Mike Bryan were upset in the Wimbledon quarters by 39-year-old Dick Norman of Belgium and Wesley Moodie of South Africa 7-6 (7-4), 7-6 (7-5), 6-7 (3-7), and 7-5.
The Bryans were chasing their ninth Grand Slam title. They were the runners-up at Wimbledon last year.
What is this world coming to on grass...???
Here's the last game of the Federer match... ((HT: AELTC/WTA/ESPN/nygiants082))
Robin Soderling rallied past defending champion Roger Federer in a quarterfinal, 3-6, 6-3, 7-5, 6-4. That ended Federer's record streak of reaching the semifinals in 23 consecutive major events.
It'll be the first Grand Slam semifinal that doesn't have Federer in the last six years...
Federer beat Soderling in last year's final. Before Tuesday, Federer was 12-0 against the big-swinging Swede, winning 28 of their 30 sets.
Here's one of those points that just reinforced that it wasn't going to be Federer's day... even with a little slice action from Roger... ((HT: Eurosport/taur1n))
Nadal improved to 15-0 on clay this season won a record 18th Masters title Sunday in Madrid- beating top-ranked Roger Federer 6-4, 7-6 in the final ((7-5 in the tiebreaker)).
"The most important thing is winning at home; winning in Madrid is a dream. After that, I think about the ranking," said Nadal. "Against this opponent, it's always going to be difficult."
And a really weird ending...
Here are the last points of the second set tie-break... ((HT: Tennis Channel/Patxy270180))
The HQ would like to ask: "Where's Dan Patrick when you need him...???" Oh, yeah... he's right here... ((HT: SI.com))
Yeah, we know.... this should be considered normal behavior... Federer faces Juan Martin Del Potro in the men's final in Flushing Meadow... This is just wrong...
Did you see, kids, that Novak Djokovic was just paralyzed by that shot...??? It's not really recommended for newly-minted fathers, though...
A Spanish fan of tennis ran onto the court at Roland Garros Sunday morning and felt compelled to place a beret on Roger Fereder during the French Open final.
After the first wave of missed tacklers went after the "chowderhead," as Mary Carillo accurately described him, look at the guy in the near court go right for the hips and make the stop.
For those of you that weren't awake at 3:30 Sunday morning...
Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal played another one of "those" championships matches. The men's Australian Open final was four hours and 22 minutes of completely ridiculous tennis. It was angles, aces, passing shots, rallies, and anything else you want in a final.
The two best in the world, regardless of surface, went at it... Here's Federer's post-match speech... ((HT: Eurosport))
Here's the match story...
Roger Federer had nowhere to hide.
Rod Laver was about to present the cup to Australian Open champion Rafael Nadal. Federer stood on the court, having just missed his first chance to equal Pete Sampras' record 14 Grand Slam singles titles.
He was sobbing. He couldn't speak.
"In the first moment you're disappointed, you're shocked, you're sad, then all of a sudden it overwhelms you," Federer finally said, referring to his 7-5, 3-6, 7-6 (3), 3-6, 6-2 loss to Nadal in a momentum-swinging, 4-hour, 22-minute title match Sunday night.
"The problem is you can't go in the locker room and just take it easy and take a cold shower. You're stuck out there. It's the worst feeling. ... It's rough."
Nadal, the first Spanish man to win the Australian Open, beat Federer in Grand Slam finals on clay and grass last year. He added the missing link Sunday with his first major title on hard courts. The 22-year-old Spaniard is 5-2 against Federer in championship matches at the majors -- 3-0 in the last three -- and 13-6 in career meetings. The most riveting was Nadal's five-set, four-hour, 48-minute win over Federer at Wimbledon last year, ending the Swiss star's five-year reign on grass.
Now, 40 years after Rod Laver last won the Grand Slam -- all four majors in one season -- Nadal is the only man who can emulate him in 2009.
Federer had been the most likely of the recent contenders, missing by one in 2006 and 2007 -- losing to Nadal at Roland Garros both years. Clay remains his obstacle. And the French Open was the only major missing in Sampras' career.
"God, it's killing me," Federer said, crying, as he tried at first to accept the runner-up plate. He returned to congratulate Nadal within minutes, saying: "You deserved it. You played a fantastic final." After collecting the trophy from Laver, on the court named for the Australian great, Nadal put his arm around Federer.
"To receive this trophy from Rod Laver is a dream for me," he said. "Rod, thanks very much. It was an amazing two weeks for me." Nadal seemed pained by Federer's anguish.
"Roger, sorry for today. I really know how you feel right now," Nadal said. "Remember, you're a great champion, you're one of the best in history. You're going to improve on the 14 of Sampras."
Nadal was in the final of a major on hard courts for the first time, having been knocked out in the semifinals of the Australian and U.S. Opens last year. Even this time, he had to struggle to make the last weekend. He held off a fellow Spanish left-hander in Fernando Verdasco on Friday in five hours, 14 minutes -- the longest match in the tournament's history.
Federer went into the final on straight sets wins over No. 8 Juan Martin del Potro and No. 7 Andy Roddick after having to rally from two sets down to beat Tomas Berdych in the fourth round.
Nadal ranked this title high on his list of six majors.
"Very special, for me," he said. "A dream win here, one Grand Slam on hard court. I worked very hard ... all my life" to improve "outside of clay. Today was really lot of emotions on court. I was there with the best player I ever saw."
Nadal said he'd be trying to break the record for most major titles, whoever holds it. He said he knows how tough it is to win every one.
"You have to be humble," he said.
Federer, for his part, hasn't given up on beating the Sampras record or of beating Nadal, on any surface.
"For sure," he said. "I didn't spend 4 1/2 hours out there (not) believing it."
Federer was struggling with mononucleosis in Australia last year and was knocked out by eventual champion Novak Djokovic in the semifinals. He was hampered early in the season, but turned it around with a title at the U.S. Open.
Facing the No. 1 player for the first time in a major final -- he held the top ranking for 237 consecutive weeks and Nadal was knocked out in the semifinals in New York in September -- he seemed to be playing catch-up after dropping his opening service game.
He saved two championship points from 15-40 in the eighth game of the fifth set but sent a forehand long on the third match point.
Nadal flopped onto his back, then got up and raced to shake hands. The players put their arms around each other's shoulders at the net as they walked off the court.
Although Federer actually won one more point (174-173), his serve let him down all too frequently. He connected on only 51 per cent of his first serves, and it seemed as if all his six double-faults came at critical times.
And as the pressure ratcheted up in the fifth set, it was Federer who wilted, not Nadal. Federer had six winners and 14 unforced errors in the set. Nadal had just two unforced errors and dropped only three points in four service games.
Federer converted only six of his 19 break-point chances; Nadal converted seven of 16.
It was the first Australian Open men's final to go to five sets since Mats Wilander beat Pat Cash in 1988, the first at Melbourne.
