Roger Federer Magical Tennis

2020-12-31T18:08:00.039-05:00

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2020-12-31T17:06:00.030-05:00

Jan 31: With a superb performance, Federer matched the open-era record of winning four Australian Opens by winning against Andy Murray. It was also a time of firsts - first as a father, first of the new decade. Congrats Roger! In retrospective, Fed was just two points away from holding all four slams at the same, a non-calendar slam.

July 05: Federer has done it - by winning his 6th Wimbledon in a heart-wrenching final against Andy Roddick, Federer staked his claim on the history books by surpassing Pete Sampras' record. Tennis history is too tangled and intertwined by various events as Rod Laver says, "You know, it's hard for anyone to come out and say who's the best ever." And here's a salute to greats of the game. Federer is all set to enjoy the game for the rest of his career. Enjoy a look-back at Roger's career so far (courtesy of ATP Tour)

June 07: It's destiny at its finest hour. Admist the support of French crowd along with slight drizzle, Federer cracked his own Holy Grail - winning the French Open at his 10th attempt and his first win in four finals. Astonishing as it is, Federer has now equaled the Open Era record of 14 Grand slam titles. And fittingly, some inspiring words straight from Kipling - read by Federer and Nadal.

"If you can keep your head when all about you are losing theirs and blaming it on you;

If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you, but make allowance for their doubting too;

If you can wait and not be tired by waiting..."

Oct 13: Federer stuck with his winning formula this year and reaped dividends as he won his fifth straight US Open title. Only three men in the history of the game has more US Open titles - Sears, Larned and the great Tilden. Here's a highlights video. Champions always have known to come back when the odds are small, lights are dim and the stage left behind..

Aug 17: Roger Federer has finally achieved his long-time dream of being an Olympic champion by winning an Olympics Gold with his good friend, Stan Wawrinka at the doubles. What a glorious day!

July 31: This devastating month of July will be viewed by fans and historians as a key turning point in Roger's career. From a heart-wrenching loss in the Wimbledon final to his two losses in the hard court master series, the four years at the top has taken its toll. It's likely that is his Number One streak of 234 consecutive weeks will come to a screeching halt. "It's a pity", as Roger would say..

June 22: Against the green background of grass courts, Roger won Halle for the fifth time. The timing was impeccable to erase the disappointing memory of losing the final at Roland Garros the last three years.

Apr 25: Roger is back with a bang as he won a sensational match at Monte Carlo against his famous nemesis, David Nalbandian. Signs are here that Roger is finally fighting off the flu, lack of conditioning and match fitness. Now he plays Djokovic, to whom he lost at the Australian Open.

Mar 1: At Australian Open, after the stomach sickness, a tough 5-setter with Tipsarevic and loss in semi-finals against Djokovic, Federer gave a great, exhaustive interview as he starts Dubai Open this week. And he won the fourth straight Laureus and first to do so. Congrats Roger!

Dec 15: A nice video to wrap up the year. Great shots of Federer from 2007. Happy Holidays!

Oct 19: Here's a cool painting by Stephen Holland.

Sep 09: After a great summer on hard courts, winning at Cincy and finals at Montreal, Federer won his fourth consecutive US Open against wind, great fight from Djokovic and bomb serves from Isner and Roddick. Truly a great classy effort for his 12th Grand slam. Check out this great article. "Surely, watching Federer is the closest any of us will get to paradise on earth in a sports arena." claims this awesome article.

July 15: Federer did it with panache to a 5-peat at Wimbledon, as this commentary exclaims, "What Federer also did, and really only he could, was in one match pay homage to an entire history of tennis. He saluted Bill Tilden’s generation with his attire, honoured Laver’s grand Australians with his manners, Connors with his spirit, McEnroe with his art, Borg with five Wimbledon wins, and when he twice was 15.40 in the fifth, and used serves to extricate himself from distress, one word flew across the mind: Sampras." Can't say much better, can we?

June 23: The grass is always greener as Wimbledon is this Sunday! Roger fans unite and give him a big wish as he aims to match history in the next two weeks.

June 10: With a heart-breaker final against Nadal on the red clay, Federer skipped Halle to rest his minor injury. He has made the finals of 8 consecutive grand slam finals. Never done before!!

May 23: After breaking with his coach, Roger was on fire (crazy rally, reaction) against Nadal at Hamburg masters. With his fourth clay masters, Roger is on perfect timing for Roland Garros. Good luck Roger on the looming French Open test.

May 13: After his shock defeat at Rome Masters, Federer has fired his part-time coach, Tony Roche just before Hamburg.

May 9: Roger won his fourth dubai title in March, before tumbling to Canas twice in Indian Wells and Miami. With the clay season well underway, Federer was denied his title at Monte Carlo by Nadal. Back with coach Roche, Federer is busy training and playing at Rome. Check out this awesome Vogue 9-page article on Roger with cool pics!!

Jan 29: Roger Federer does what he does the best. He won his third Australian Open to raise his slam count to 10 slams. Woot !! Do check out this great article - Federer immune to the laws of sport.

Jan 24: As Roger gets to play Roddick tommorow at the Australian Open SF, enjoy this great article by Jake Niall.

Jan 9: Roger Federer plays in Kooyong exhibition this week before he defends his crown at the Australian Open. In his vacation, he went to India as an UNICEF ambassador to mark the second aniversary of the tragic tsunami and says, "I have spent a lot of time with the children and I think I now know each of them by their first name, Children are our future, and for that reason I have tried to inspire them." What a great champ !! (also a video).

Nov 23: More on the Federer-Nadal exhibition at South Korea here.

Nov 19: Federer finished the year with an impressive win at the Masters Cup in Shanghai. With it, he will break the Jimmy Connors record of consecutive weeks at number one. He would do so sometime after the upcoming Australian Open. Federer plays Nadal again in an exhibition on Nov 22. After a short break, he will be in Doha to practice with Coach Roche before starting his next season. Wishing you happy holidays !!

Oct 29: Federer finally won his first home town title this week at Basel against Gonzalez. After his emotional loss in 2001 against Henman (video) and 2002, Federer was over-joyed at his win. Highlights of all his matches this year are here. And here's the gorgeous trophy.

Oct 22: Roger won his 10th title this year at Madrid and has done so for the last three years. Roger won Tokyo with the blog-power, and Madrid after his impressive victory against Gonzalez. The eventful tourney concluded with models as ball girls and champagne celebrations. And the now popular 'shhh' from Berdych.

Oct 1: Heads up! Roger is blogging in Tokyo this week for ATP.

Sep 10: Against an inspired Andy, Roger won a tight US Open final for his 9th Grandslam. Congrats Roger !! Tiger Woods was in Roger's box as they were both managed by IMG. Roger had a +50 differential with 69 winners and just 19 errors. Insane and simply mind-numbing !!! Also buy a Feder-bear that will be available soon as a part of the Roger's UNICEF charity initiatives.

Sep 2: In a rain-interrupted week at the US Open, Agassi and King has grabbed the headlines. Roger has been under the radar and he hit a magical shot (vid) against Henman yesterday. On a serious note, wanna spend an hour exclusively with Roger and Tony Roche? Humpty Dumpty foundation is auctioning (pdf) for its charity for children.

Aug 21: Federer won the canada masters after several 3-setters and an intense final against young gun Richard Gasquet before losing to Andy Murray in the 2nd round of Cincy Masters. He looked pretty tired after playing back-to-back masters and is now preparing for the US Open. Do check out this awesome article from David Wallace titled "Federer as Religious Experience" at NYTimes.

July 9: Federer does it in style as he wins his 4th straight Wimbledon. After a really rough draw and an unexpected final against Nadal, finally Federer conquered his nemesis to grab his 8th Grand Slam. Congrats Roger. And May all the federer fans rejoice !! Do check out this classic camaraderie picture and video [Thanks beernutz]. And also his post match interview. And do check out insider info [3rd post] about his jacket. And some pics.

June 20: Wimbledon is finally here and Roger got his fourth Halle title. Considering it is just the week after Paris, Roger brought his fitness trainer Pierre Paganini with him. It is remarkable how he went through a tough draw and transistioned to grass. Read his post-match interview after his final against Tomas Berdych. By the way, Max Mirnyi is blogging this week at ATP.

June 12: Roger showed why he is a class-act with his post-match interview after his heart-breaking defeat at the hands of the young Rafael Nadal and his French Open Blog. Roger admitted he didn't play as well as he has played at earlier matches. It surely is disappointing the way he approached from the second set after his stellar set. Anyways, on to the greener lusher Wimbledon. He plays Halle this week.

May 22: Next week is the French Open, with Federer and Nadal as top two seeds. Meanwhile checkout the transcript of the Federer's radio interview. It is very nice, frank and honest interview ranging from his one-dimensional comment to his childhood crush with Gabriella Sabatini. Here is the Part One and Part Two of the interview. Also see this video of the amazing shot a few years back against roddick [Thanks a guy]. And yes, he does it with style. Roger wins his second consecutive Sportsman of the Year title at the Laureus World Sports awards !! Congrats, Roger.

May 14: Roger played against clay king Nadal in a five hour five setter marathon match with 3 tiebreaks and lost a heartbreaker. Scoreline, 7-6(0), 6(5)-7, 4-6, 6-2, 6(5)-7, says it all. Roger showed his heart as a true champion at the Rome Masters. Congrats to Nadal on tieing Guillermo Vilas's clay court win streak of 53.

May 1: Federer played in an exhibition match at Sierre. Here is a short clip and more pics here [Thanks Mrs.B]. Read all about the encounters of Roger and Nadal on clay (at Roland Garros 05 and Monte Carlo 06) in this excellent article.

Apr 24: Federer went down bravely against a red-hot nadal at Monte Carlo yesterday :(. But he got a nice measure of Nadal ahead of the French Open. Check out his post match interview (as well as Nadal's). In other news, Wimbledon still refuses equal pay for women :(

Apr 22: It's Federer vs Nadal on red clay tommorow. Do check out the scores here and live on computer here. Nadal is 3-1 head-to-head against Roger.

Apr 3: Federer became the first man to win back-to-back Double Masters in tennis after a tough fightout against Ivan Ljubicic yesterday. After a couple of weeks rest, he plays at Montecarlo masters, supposedly the closest to Roland Garros clay. Between, he joins an elite list as an UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador in NY today. Check out the ATP's new page that celebrates his off-tennis charity work and his interview.

Mar 31: Just like his brilliant tennis against blake yesterday, Federer has signed an exclusive Memorabilia deal. Check out his Roger Federer Collection at Steiner Sports. Looks good to me.

Mar 20: Federer had his highs and lows last week and won decisively against James Blake for his 9th Tennis Masters Shield. If there is only one article that you ever want to read about Federer, Read this.

Mar 14: Federer is currently playing at the Pacific Life Open at IndianWells, CA. ATP has this cool highlight video thingy available for free here. Also check out the blogging series by various top ranked players participating in tournaments.

Mar 7: After playing sublime tennis for a set and half, Roger went down to Nadal in 3 sets at the Dubai Open Final. Check out his post-match interview.

Feb 27: If you are a fan of mobile games, check out this cool Federer game that can be played on a variety of phones and it just costs $7. Also, check out their demo.

Feb 03: A couple of stuff for the weekend: Do listen to the Tennis Podcast from Kevin McClure. It looks very exciting. Also read all about the federer's saga with sponsorship on this article.

Jan 29: Federer did it with amazing struggle and emotion at the Melbourne Park. He overcome challenges of his own with his ankle recovery and train-rolling-down with Baghdatis, one to watch in the years to come. Roger was clearly moved with Rocket Rod giving him his 7th Grand Slam. Write a poem about roger and win cool stuff. Deadline is Feb 6th. Do check out the video of Federer's speech during the trophy presentation from Rod Laver here. It was so wonderful to see Roger emotional and how much that trophy meant to him..

Jan 17: With the third title at Doha and exhibition matches at Kooyong, Federer is through to the second rd at the Aussie Open as a heavy favorite.

Jan 06: Federer starts his season with a bang as he is in the final defending his title at Doha against the exciting teenager Gael Monfils after winning over Tommy Haas. Tony Roche has been busy training Roger as well as giving interviews like this and that. Roger is also quoted on the media saying his ankle injury has completed healed and he's fit !!

Older Published News (2005) and Interesting Articles

Federer Fifteen

2010-01-31T06:53:00.000-05:00

Enjoy a look-back at Roger's career so far (courtesy of ATP Tour)

The Giants of the Game

2009-08-06T19:32:00.093-05:00

In the myriad of confusing and convoluted tennis history since the birth of modern tennis in 1870s, marred by elitism and amateurism, a few giants of tennis stand as the illuminating way for us to understand the vagaries of tennis. This is not a list of the ever popular, precise and totally irrelevant GOAT discussion - but rather a guide to understand tennis history and its perplexing but enthralling tennis and its characters. Populism comes and goes in each era - but there are a few on who's shoulders that the modern Federers and Sampras' stand on.

Age	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31	32	33	34	35	36	37	38	39	40	41	42	43	44	45	Career

Tilden	1915	1916	1917	1918	1919	1920	1921	1922	1923	1924	1925	1926	1927	1928	1929	1930	1931	1932	1933	1934	1935	1936	1937	1938	1939	Career
Australian		x	x	x													x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	-
French	x	x	x	x	x		W						F		SF	F	x	x	W	W	F		SF	F	F	3
Wimbledon	x	x	x	x		W	W						SF	SF	SF	W	x	x	x	RR3	F	F	F	F	RR3	3
US Open		r128	r32	F	F	W	W	W	W	W	W	QF	F		W	SF	W	F			W				SF	9^b

Budge	1934	1935	1936	1937	1938	1939	1940	1941	1942	1943	1944	1945	1946	1947	1948	1949	1950	1951	1952	1953	1954	1955	1956	1957	1959	1960	Career
Australian					W	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x		x	x		x	x	1
French					W	W	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x		x	x		x			2
Wimbledon		SF	SF	W	W	W	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	SF	SF		SF	SF							3
US Open	r16	QF	F	W	W		W	r16	W	QF	x	a	F	F	SF	F			SF	F	SF	QF					4

Gonzales	1947	1948	1949	1950	1951	1952	1953	1954	1955	1956	1957	1958	1959	1960	1961	1962	1963	1964	1965	1966	1967	1968	1969	1970	1971	1972	1973	Career
Australian				x	x	x	x		x	x			x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	r16					0
French			SF	x	x	x		x	x	F	x	SF			F			SF				SF						0
Wimbledon			r16	W	W	W	F	x	x	W	SF	SF			SF			SF				r32	r16		r64	r64		4
US Open	r64	W	W		RR2	F	W	W	W	W	W	W	W		W		QF	F	SF			QF	r16	r32	r32	r128	r128	10

Rosewall	1952	1953	1954	1955	1956	1957	1958	1959	1960	1961	1962	1963	1964	1965	1966	1967	1968	1969	1970	1971	1972	1973	1974	1975	1976	1977	1978	1979	Career
Australian	QF	W	SF	W	F			x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	r16		W	W	r32			SF	SF	QF	r16	4^c
French	r64	W	r32			x	W	SF	W	W	W	W	W	W	W	SF	W	F											10
Wimbledon	r128	QF	F	SF	F	W	SF	SF	W	W	W	W	F	SF	F	F	r16	r32	F	SF			F	r16					5
US Open	QF	SF	SF	F	W	SF						W	SF	W	F	SF	SF	QF	W		r64	SF	F			r32			4

Laver	1956	1957	1958	1959	1960	1961	1962	1963	1964	1965	1966	1967	1968	1969	1970	1971	1972	1973	1974	1975	1976	1977	1978	1979	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984	Career
Australian	r32	r32	r16	r16	W	F	W	x	x	x	x	x	x	W		r16														3
French	r128	a	r64	r32	r32	SF	W	F	F	F	F	W	F	W																3
Wimbledon	r128	a	r32	F	F	W	W	QF	W	W	W	W	W	W	r16	QF						r64								8
US Open	r128	a	r16	QF	F	F	W	F	W	F	W	W	r16	W	r16		r16	r32		r16										5
Age	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31	32	33	34	35	36	37	38	39	40	41	42	43	44	45

Green shaded boxes represent Pre-open Era amateur division of traditional grandslams.
Blue boxes represent Pre-open Era under Pro division, whose 3 Grand slam equivalents were French Pro, Wembley and US Pro till 1967.
White boxes represent the Open Era, however "contract" professionals were banned for several grand slams (shown in light blue boxes) due to conflicts between NTL, WCT and ITLF till 'true' Open Era started in 1973 US Open with the formation of ATP in 1972.

Note: Age at the begining of the tennis season, Jan 1.

Note2: x indicates that the tournament was not held for that year.

Note3: Budge served in United States Air Force during 1943-45. Laver served at Australian Army in 1957. Both are indicated by 'a' for the respective grand slams.

Note4: Bill Tilden played till his untimely passing in 1953. He played in 6 more U.S Pro - 1940 (SF), 1941 (QF), 1943 (QF), 1945 (SF), 1946 (r16) and 1952 (QF). U.S. Pro was not held in 1944. Those are not shown in the table above and is indicated by 'b' on his US Open Career column.

Note5: Ken Rosewall played at age 16, in 1951 Australian Championships with his first round (r32) and is not shown in the table above. It is indicated by 'c' on his Australian Open Career column.

Note6: French Championships pre-1925 are from World Hard Court Championships (1912-23), which has a direct lineage to the modern French Open rather than club-member only event (1891-1924) that has been typically considered as the precursor.

Trails you leave behind....(aka Celebration of Champions)

2008-10-13T14:28:00.020-05:00

Statistics - I have long abhorred in tennis. For it simplifies the great intricacies of the game and masks the glory. Those numbers with absolute accuracy and so less precision. Numbers that betray the magic. Numbers that give away so little and hold back the spontaneity. Numbers that say so little and yet make one cling to them more tenaciously.. Numbers don't tell history and very few, if any, can be viewed with any high esteem in tennis.

In an eagerness to rewrite history and put things in orderly boxes, history has been untold and retold with much ambiguity and propriety. All has been said and mulled over about Open era, French open not open to foreigners in early years, distinction between amateur and professional tennis, scope and impact of Australian open till 1990s, impact of non-wooden rackets and 14 as the magic number of slams and so on... Numerous tricks have been pulled. History rewritten, forgotten and the glorious past, all but nothing more than shoved away.

However, one can still use a such number to highlight events that can take us away, back to the time, when things were not so simple. Tennis, as everything else on this world, evolves. These grand slams did not spur out of no where. They evolved, changed, and over a long run moved forward.. Let us explore the three such slams with distinguished history, those of the kind that weather two world wars, great depression, tyranny, birth of world leaders and so on..

Wimbledon - The birth place of modern tennis. Undeterred by changing times, where tradition takes front seat to change. Whites all around and the great grass courts. And held in the same place since 1877, the years gone by.

US Open - In the New world of 1900s, USA with its frontiers being tested, US Open stood the test of time with vociferous crowds and leading the way on change with professional tennis. This slam and its conquest marks uniquely.

French Open - As an antidote to the Anglophone world order, this terre bautte has been rightfully a jewel in tennis history. Though admonished for not opening up to the world for a while, this slam with its gruelling stakes is highly worthy.

And who can forget the tribulations and ecstasy of nations competing on tennis grounds. The unique Davis cup that brings patriotic spirit to this individualistic sport. The passion and all those that this event seeks out from the fan.

There were four or so watershed events in the history of tennis, which in it's modern form is about 130 years old. Those that can help define an era. Those moments that looking back gives a clear picture on the events that unfold.. With it origin in 1870s as an elite sport, tennis has spread its wings to millions and millions of fans across nations that vast horizons.

The early one was the World War I that united tennis across the pond. Millions with new found hope started playing tennis as it moved away from amateur regionalistic slams. Till then, mostly the slams were competed by national players and foreign-born who settled in those countries. Much were lost about those in this Era, say Amateur Era, between 1877-WW1. With prominent clubs nationally taking the scene, it is hard to pinpoint on players who dominated across the slams.

In the aftermath of world war, tennis became more of an international sport with the slams gaining in recognition and prestige. It was also a time of expansion with local clubs spurting everywhere. Still, tennis was fairly un-commercialized and elite privileged few competed. Great Britain, France and US shared the spoils of Davis Cup. Bill Tilden, Four Musketeers and Fred Perry were the most distinguished among those in this Expansion Era that overlapped two world wars.

With the memory of brutal World War 2 behind, the Professional Era reigned in nations that survived to exhibit a sense of optimism, peace and progress. With the advent of professional tennis along with prizes, tennis had taken growth from Down Under. The amateur and pro split is now firmly seated with grand slam equivalents for professionals - Wembley, US Pro and French Pro. In an era predominately contested between Australia and US, Rod Laver and Ken Rosewall from Down-under and Pancho Gonzalez were most distinguished among these elite champions. It was during this era from WW2 till 1968, that professional tennis has taken over from its amateurish roots and firmly seated itself as a professional sport.

With the clash of old and new, comes the fondly called Open Era, where everyone can compete in slams. With strongholds of slams allowing professionals, it was time of change, conflict and confusion. Professional tours and their competing players meant that there were only a few times when the world's best were all present for the three big slams. Tennis had its champions come from many different nations with Sweden a force to reckon with. The most distinguished among those were Bjorn Borg and American duo - Jimmy Connors and John McEnroe. With a lot of feudal fighting among tours, organizations and everything, it truly was a time that put Tennis firmly in its seat as professional sport and was heavily commercialized with the advent of mass TV.

And from those turmoil gives birth to today's Modern Era of stability with the advent of Australian Open as the fourth slam and finally getting its recognition and prestige in late 1980s. Tours were unified, tournaments expanded and commercialization to its tilt, tennis exploded world wide. Champions from vast different countries and Davis cup winners all around the world. Put to the test, tennis is now shown around the world with supreme athletic and coordination skills. With competition intensified, the most distinguished of this Modern Era includes Ivan Lendl, Pete Sampras and Roger Federer.

As we see, the history of tennis is long and storied with changes being thought of and inspired as times rolls by. It is truly a trivial pursuit to crown someone the greatest of them all, as you see, great men respond to changing times and champions do it both on and off-the-court.

Hope you have enjoyed this journey. I have put together a detailed spreadsheet of past champions in tennis history. It is freely available and editable by you.

Roger Federer vs. Rod Laver

2007-10-06T13:48:00.029-05:00

Laver and Federer were both born in August 43 years apart. Federer's birthday is August 08, 1981, while Laver's is August 09, 1938. It makes comparing them straightforward as the grand slams make up this way too. For example, Federer won his second Wimbledon in 2004 at the age of 22, while Laver won his first Wimbledon 1961, at the same age of 22. And so on.. get the drift?

Laver	1956	1957	1958	1959	1960	1961	1962	1963	1964	1965	1966	1967	1968	1969	1970	1971	1972	1973	1974	1975	1976	1977	Career
Australian	r32	r32	r16	r16	W	F	W							W	-	r16	-	-	-	-	-	-	3
French	r128	-a	r64	r32	r32	SF	W	F	F	F	F	W	F	W	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	3
Wimbledon	r128	-a	r32	F	F	W	W	QF	W	W	W	W	W	W	r16	QF	-	-	-	-	-	r64	8
US Open	r128	-a	r16	QF	F	F	W	F	W	F	W	W	r16	W	r16	-	r16	r32	-	r16	-	-	5
RF/RL age	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31	32	33	34	35	36	37	38

Federer	1999	2000	2001	2002	2003	2004	2005	2006	2007	2008	2009	2010	2011	Career
Australian	q1	3r	3r	4r	4r	W	SF	W	W	SF	F	W	SF	4
French	1r^w	4r	QF	1r	1r	3r	SF	F	F	F	W	QF	F	1
Wimbledon	1r^w	1r	QF	1r	W	W	W	W	W	F	W	QF	QF	6
US Open	q2	3r	4r	4r	4r	W	W	W	W	W	F	SF	SF	5

Green shaded boxes represent Rod Laver playing in Pre-open Era amateur division. Blue boxes represent Rod Laver playing in Pre-open Era under Pro division, whose 3 Grand slam equivalents were French Pro, Wembley and US Pro. These divisions were eliminated in 1968 French Open with the beginning of the Open Era, represented in White boxes, however "contract" professionals were banned for several grand slams (shown in light blue boxes) due to conflicts between NTL, WCT and ITLF till 'true' Open Era started in 1972 US Open with the formation of ATP.

Note: RF/RR age is the age of both Roger Federer and Rod Laver when the tennis season starts (Jan 1). By the time they play US Open, they would have had their birthday and older by one year. (Like Federer won his first US Open at age 23, though he was 22 when the tennis season started).

Note2: Laver served at Australian Army in 1957 as indicated by 'a' for the last three slams of the season.

Data by Wikipedia, ITF & ATP.

Also see, Federer at Grand slam Singles Main draw.

Roger Federer vs. Bjorn Borg vs. Rafael Nadal

2007-10-06T12:58:00.014-05:00

Similar to Roger Federer vs. Pete Sampras summary, here's an attempt to match the Swedish ice-man, Björn Borg's achievements against Roger.

Federer's birthday is August 08, 1981, while Borg's is June 6, 1956. So, they are 25 years apart, which makes it convenient to compare them. Some similarities include Borg is 0/9 at US Open where Roger has won four straight times, like Federer is 0/9 at French Open where Borg has won six including four straight. Borg and Federer were known to be brats during junior days and then developed an ice-cool demeanor later on. Also, both Borg and Federer has won Wimbledon five straight times, an all-time record and both are junior Wimbledon champions as well.

Also, during the era when Borg played, Australian was not considered a serious slam and most of the pros never played them, at least not consistently like modern pros do.

Update: Added Nadal as well - as a sheer coincidence, Nadal was born 30 years apart on June 3, 1986. Both being at the top of their game from a very early age and the eerie similarity of their success at French Open as well.

Borg	1973	1974	1975	1976	1977	1978	1979	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984	1985	1986	1987	Career
Australian	-	3r	-	-	-	-	-	-	-							0
French	4r	W	W	QF	-	W	W	W	W							6
Wimbledon	QF	3r	QF	W	W	W	W	W	F							5
US Open	4r	2r	SF	F	4r	F	QF	F	F							0
Nadal	2003	2004	2005	2006	2007	2008	2009	2010	2011	2012	2013	2014	2015	2016	2017	Career
Australian	-	3r	4r	-	QF	SF	W	QF	QF							1
French	-	-	W	W	W	W	4r	W	W							6
Wimbledon	3r	-	2r	F	F	W	-	W	F							2
US Open	2r	2r	3r	QF	4r	SF	SF	W								1
Federer	1998	1999	2000	2001	2002	2003	2004	2005	2006	2007	2008	2009	2010	2011	2012	Career
Australian	j-F	q1	3r	3r	4r	4r	W	SF	W	W	SF	F	W	SF		4
French	j-1r	1r^w	4r	QF	1r	1r	3r	SF	F	F	F	W	QF	F		1
Wimbledon	j-W	1r^w	1r	QF	1r	W	W	W	W	W	F	W	QF	QF		6
US Open	j-SF	q2	3r	4r	4r	4r	W	W	W	W	W	F	SF	SF		5
BB/RN /RF age	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30

Note: RF/BB age is the age of both Roger Federer and Bjorn Borg when the tennis season starts (Jan 1). By the time Borg played Wimbledon and Federer play US Open, they would have had their birthday and older by one year. (Like Federer won his first US Open at age 23, though he was 22 when the tennis season started).

Data by Wikipedia.

Also Federer at Grand slam Singles Main draw.

Games and more on Federer

2006-04-04T11:11:00.000-05:00

Here is an attempt to compile the games that feature Roger Federer. Enjoy these cool stuff. More coming soon!

Know your Federer, a Crossword challenge
Roger Jigsaw Game, Screenshot, Free Download
RF Trivia Tryout, 10 questions about his 2005 season
Tennis Open, a mobile game
Top Spin 2, a Xbox or PlayStation game with Federer

Federer Practice Videos and More

2006-03-17T14:31:00.000-05:00

I had the opportunity to catch his practice session at the 2005 Cincinnati Masters.

More Federer Videos can be found at
At Go Roger! Collection
At Google Video
At YouTube
At Yahoo! Videos
At Truveo Video
At Singingfish
At Blinkx
At AOL

Federer Tracker 2005

2005-07-22T11:11:00.000-05:00

A compilation of Federer Tracker News, Articles and Links that were published on FedererMagic during 2005.

Dec 24: Check out the season's greetings from Federer on this neat little flash. Also his schedule till Wimby next year remains the same as this year except for Davis cup commitments.

Nov 21: The mythical fighter inside Roger and his place in history has been chalked up a notch as he gone down bravely against the crafty Nalbandian in 5 sets after coming back from 0-4 to serving for the match at 6-5 in the fifth set at the Masters Cup final at Shanghai. Roger sure won the hearts of the millions of the Asia and the final score read 6-7(4) 6-7(11) 6-2 6-1 7-6(3). It's a pity but all streaks had to end. Here's to a wonder vacation for Roger and a healthy start to the next year. Go read his post-match interview !!

Nov 15: Federer has arrived in Shanghai; More and a Pic. And now he has won a match against his nemesis, Nalbandian in a somewhat shaky match in three sets. Hooray !! And was crowned numero uno. And he is in Semifinals after surviving a tough match against Ljubicic a

Oct 29: According to an article in a german newspaper, Roger was quoted saying that he has recovered from the injury and is practising and that he will defend his masters cup title in shanghai this November . English translation here. Let's hope he gets to play !! w00t. Update: A message from Roger on RF.com and on BBC. Also, the new Roger Federer Official Fanclub will be launched on Nov 1st by Roger himself.

Oct 12: Sadly, Federer has injured himself during his training today with a torn ligament in his right foot. He has withdrew from Madrid Masters as well as from Basel Indoors. He could potentially miss the Paris Masters too. See his short message on his website. Get well soon, Roger.

Oct 03: So much in the last 2 weeks, Federer helped Swiss beat GB in Davis Cup play-off, and then he flew to Bangkok and won comfortably for the second time against Andy Murray in the finals. And today, in Shanghai, he opened the new $200 million beautiful stadium that will host the masters cup; [interview video]. And he has locked in the Year end #1. Also, ATP has launched a Roger Federer Mini site. And several short video clips of Federer's famous wins at Wimby are here.

Sep 21: Federer was on David Letterman show and here's the complete video clip [courtesy of Stephan]. Also see the transcript [thanks RF]. Roger tells his story of the incident that inspired him to change from a tennis racket smasher to a record breaking iceman. Also, Federer has rehired IMG agency for promotion along with his existing team; More here & here.

Sep 12: Wow. In a brilliant finals against Awesome Agassi and some 24,000 cheering fans, Roger won his 6th Grandslam and became the first ever to win back-to-back US Open and Wimby titles consecutively in the Open Era. Do see the post-match interview of Agassi and Roger as well as Hall-of-fame inductee Lendl's comments on Coach Roach. Also, the Wertheim's Parting Shots. Tune to David Letterman tonight at 11:30 CBS for Roger's interview. Also some Final's Video clips [Thanks SP]. And hugs to Kim Clijsters for her win !!

Sep 09: After a scare against Keifer and a good match with Nalbandian, Roger tries for his second consecutive Finals at the US Open against Hewitt on Super Saturday. Do check out this awesome interview clip of Roger and Coach Roach in 60 Minutes Australia. Nice stuff. Also, the indepth interview of Roger in the new Men's Vogue magazine and the red carpet party.

Aug 27: US Open is here, and every name in town is playing this year. Roger has been practising since Tuesday. No Coach Roach around. Do check out the Official Roger Federer DVD - REPLAY. For now, available only in Region 2 format and in Switzerland only [English].

Aug 22: Whew! Roger improved from his bad record of 1-4 at Cincy with his first title against Andy in straight sets. Go, check out his post-match interview as well as Andy's [ANDY RODDICK: If you met him at McDonald's and you didn't know who he was, you would have no idea that he's one of the best athletes in the world]. Thanks Andy !!

Aug 08: Happy Birthday, Roger !! Do check out the redesigned RogerFederer.com as well as his cool federer tracker map showing all the places he visited this year. Wow! Or the take the 5 question challenge to win a prize. Update: See what Silvy and her friends gave for Roger on his b-day. [must-see]

Aug 02: The good news is Federer is currently vacationing and with his inflamation gone, he is all set to train with Roche for the Cincy Masters. Check out his schedule for the rest of 2005.

July 21: Sadly, Federer withdrew from Canada Masters due to his recurrent feet injury:(. He is currently on vacation to heal his feet and hopefully would play at Cincy Masters before his US Open defence. And, Coach Roach won't accompany him for the american tour.

July 03: Federer did it, as he bucked history to be the first to win a slam the year after winning three or more slams. And rightly so, as a tripeat Big W champion. Ahh, a what a relief and joy it beholds !! Celebrate Federer's win by reading this beautiful article or this one or his interview or Andy's; or watch the reaction from roger (video) or the highlights video.

June 28: So far at the hallowed grass lawns of Wimby, here are the highlights from Federer's matches: R1 vs Paul Mathieu; R2 vs Ivo Minar; R3 vs Nicolas Kiefer; R4 vs Juan Carlos Ferrero. Thanks Steven. An excellent article on Federer as a kid. And his golden shoes.

June 13: Say hello to grass-season, as Roger sweeps both the singles and doubles titles at Halle. Here is a 5-minute highlights video to relive the magical fourth round at Wimby 2001; the five-setter match that Roger calls his 'biggest win in my life' against Pete Sampras. Also his post-match interview [Hat tip: Stevens Point]. Arnab Zaheen points out to a must-read article for Federer fans as well as a similar article at SI. Also, check out the Federer's schedule for the rest of the 2005 season.

June 03: Nadal must be a happy birthday boy. In the semis, Federer was never really comfortable since he was clearly rattled from the start. It is very sad as he went down in four sets; but nevertheless very proud that Roger made to the French Semifinals! For the brave, here is a Highlights Video of Federer Vs Nadal, Interview and Interview Transcript. [Thanks Stevens Point]

May 31: It's what we all been waiting for!! It's Federer vs Nadal - A Titanic Struggle of epic proportions. They are 1-1 head-to-head and never on clay. It is Nadal's first FO as is Roger's first Semi-finals at the French. And as they clash on this Friday, Nadal turns 19. No one has ever won a grand slam the year after they won three or more slams. Y'all gotta watch it. May 24: And the clay court championship begins.. Federer plays against Nicolas Almagro in the second round of FO tommorow. Watch the highlights and interview of his first round. Also see the Nike promotion video from last weekend with Rafa and Roger [Thanks Stevens Point]. Check out the cool screen shots on the Top Spin featuring Federer. Now, we all can play like Federer ;)

May 16: Last Sunday, Roger won his third masters of the year at Hamburg, and says, he loves playing in Germany. Coach Roach will be staying with him till French Open and the FO main draw is this friday. On the more exciting news, Roger just won the Laureus World Sportsman of the Year (aka Oscars of the Sports). Well done Roger! More.

May 9: Last weekend, Roger played an exhibition match on River Elbe. Today at Hamburg, with a tough draw, Roger is back with his first round win against Verdasco (6-4,6-3). He is also playing doubles with Yves. Also present with him is Coach Roach. In other news, Top Spin, the tennnis game will be available on PS2 (previously only on Xbox). And this time it features Roger Federer. Woohoo!!

May 2: I ran across these excellent short videos:

Superb backhand lob against Agassi that even suprised Federer at Dubai '05
Brilliant Match Point of Federer vs Suzuki at AO '05 [videos courtesy of this website].
New Nike Ad with Roger Federer on his bare feet [telecasted in Europe, Thanks Lucana]
ATP All-Star Rally for Relief Video

Apr 30: A sad day, as Roger had withdrawn from Rome with inflammation on his both feet. He hasn't withdrawn from Hamburg, which starts the week after. So hopefully, it is a precaution measure and lets pray that he will be all well soon.

Apr 25: Last weekend was Tennis Festival at Roger's club in Basel, Old Boys' Tennis Club. Rogi won an exhibition match against Marco Chiudinelli. Highlights in a video clip here and pictures here [Thanks eve]. Enjoy !

Apr 17: With two weeks off for practise following Federer's QF defeat in Montecarlo, rumor mill has it that Coach Roach will accompany him to his next two Masters (Rome and Hamburg). Between, congrats to Nadal on his first TMS win.

Apr 12: Let the dance of clay showmasters begin... Roger wins his first match against Rusedski at the Montecarlo Masters. Next off, he faces Montanes in Round 2.

Apr 3: Wow. Roger wins the NASDAQ-100 with an dugout dog fight against Nadal in 5 gruelling emotional sets. Roger looked out of sorts for about 2 and half sets and finally pulled it off.. Well done Federer and Nadal. Great Gruelling Match.. Player Interviews here.

Apr 1: No April Foolin', but, It's Roger Vs Andre tonight. Gotta glue on ya tv sets !! If not, get the live scores here.

Mar 30: Incase you missed the 45 shot rally that Federer and Hewitt played during the last week Indian Wells Finals, Check out the video clip here. It won't be there for long. So save a copy of it to show to your grand kids !! Check out what Federer has to say about that point.

Mar 28: While I was on Spring Break, Rogi won Indian Wells. Congrats Rogi. In Miami, he faces Zabaleta in Round 3 today. Did you check out the ATP All-Star Rally for Relief of top-10 players? Read here and see them here and the video here. Sshh, Facing Federer Collector's DVD is released this week; watch the exclusive preview, available at Tenniswarehouse; Reviews.

Roger Federer vs. Pete Sampras

2005-07-05T17:59:00.008-05:00

I am not a big believer of stats. That said, there are several interesting coincidences about the careers of Pete and Roger. And unsurprising it is. Though they have vastly different approach to tennis as well as slams, here is an attempt to celebrate the coincidences rather than as a comparison between them.

Sampras and Federer were both born in August ten year apart. Federer's birthday is August 08, 1981, while Sampras's is August 12, 1971. So, at the time of writing, Sampras is 33, while Federer is 23. And the grand slams make up this way too. For example, Federer won Wimbledon 2005 at the age of 23, while Sampras won Wimbledon 1995, at the same age of 23. And so on.. get the drift?

Sampras	1988	1989	1990	1991	1992	1993	1994	1995	1996	1997	1998	1999	2000	2001	2002	Career
Australian	-	1r	4r	-	-	SF	W	F	3r	W	QF	-	SF	4r	4r	2
French	-	2r	-	2r	QF	QF	QF	1r	SF	3r	2r	2r	1r	2r	1r	0
Wimbledon	-	1r	1r	2r	SF	W	W	W	QF	W	W	W	W	4r	2r	7
US Open	1r^w	4r	W	QF	F	W	4r	W	W	4r	SF	-	F	F	W	5

Federer	1998	1999	2000	2001	2002	2003	2004	2005	2006	2007	2008	2009	2010	2011	2012	Career
Australian	j-F	q1	3r	3r	4r	4r	W	SF	W	W	SF	F	W	SF		4
French	j-1r	1r^w	4r	QF	1r	1r	3r	SF	F	F	F	W	QF	F		1
Wimbledon	j-W	1r^w	1r	QF	1r	W	W	W	W	W	F	W	QF	QF		6
US Open	j-SF	q2	3r	4r	4r	4r	W	W	W	W	W	F	SF	SF		5
RF/PS age	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30

Sampras won his half of his 14 slams (7), at his mid point, at his 8th year as a pro (of his 15 year career).

Note: RF/PS age is the age of both Roger Federer and Pete Sampras when the tennis season starts (Jan 1). By the time they play US Open, they would have had their birthday and older by one year. (Like Sampras won his last US Open at age 31, though he was 30 when the tennis season started).

Original idea by Tennis28 ; Data by Wikipedia.

Also Federer at Grand slam Singles Main draw.
______________

Sampras vs Federer on Wimbledon 2001:

Some stats about the historic match in the Round of 16. It was the only time they both met and since Sampras has retired, Federer holds a 1-0 lifetime head to head against him. Going into the match,

Pete had never lost a 5-set match at Wimbledon before he lost to Federer 7-6, 5-7, 6-4, 6-7, 7- 5.
He had a streak of 31 straight wins at Wimbledon, tying him with Rod Laver.
Pete had won the seven of the last 8 Wimbledons going into the 2001 Wimby.
Pete was looking for his 100th win at Wimbledon when he met Federer. He got his 100th win at Wimbledon with his 3-set win over Martin Lee in R128 the next year. It was also his last win at Wimbledon.

For the record, you can get the 2-disc DVD of the match from Adrian. He sells it for US $7.50 [See more]. It is nice to Roger that young and playing a heck of a great match.

Map of Roger Federer's Switzerland

2005-07-05T15:09:00.000-05:00

Few Places of interest for Federer fans are,

Münchenstein: Federer's Birthplace
Bottmingen: Federer's parents House
Oberwil: Federer and Mirka's Apartment
Schaffhausen: Mirka's parents House

Münchenstein, Bottmingen, and Oberwil are very close to Basel, a city of northern Switzerland on the Rhine River bordering Germany. Schaffhausen is 100km from Basel on the east. Here's a map with the cities underlined:

Also see the excellent virtual tour of Basel here.

Original idea from ste.

Roger Federer Pictures and Photos

2005-07-05T09:32:00.000-05:00

It's long overdue that FedererMagic should have a photo gallery of Roger. But due to copyright restrictions and several thousands of pictures of federer on the web, it's pretty impossible to keep it updated. So, I am going to put some of my favorite pictures and several links to dedicated collections of pics and photos.

More Sources to get Roger's Pictures:

Tennis Galleries at Mens Tennis Forums, Tennis Server, VTP, BBC, and Advantage Tennis
Image Search on Google, Yahoo, MSN, and Flickr
Editorial Images on Getty, and Corbis
Gallery at RF.com and Siggi Bucher
News Photos on Yahoo, SI, Wired, and AU

New! And Videos as well:

How to Save Streaming Videos?

2005-06-13T13:34:00.000-05:00

You come across a nice video. But, alas it is a streaming video and hence cannot be saved to your hard disk. However there are certain techniques to save the video clip in a single file.

NOTE: Saving streaming video/audio is not legal for distribution. The reasoning behind the publishers releasing streaming videos (i.e. a big file in several small parts) is for faster viewing in the video player as well as to prevent distribution. So, if you download it, save it for your own personal archival use and not for distribution else where. As usual, use it at your own risk. That said, enjoy!

Real Media Format:
It is difficult to save a streaming file from Real Media format, however it is not impossible:

Step 1: Save the http link of the video clip to your desktop. [Right Click -> Save As]
Step 2: Open the .rm file on Notepad. [Right Click -> Open With -> Notepad]
Step 3: It is a text file that will look like this:

rtsp://62.2.180.194:554/doha.rm?cloakport=80,554,7070--stop--
pnm://62.2.180.194:7070/doha.rm?cloakport=80,554,7070

Step 4: Copy the rtsp:// link
Step 5: Open your downloader and save the rtstp file. (rtsp files wont save in any browser like Internet Explorer or Firefox etc)
Step 6: If you don't have a free downloader, I recommend Net Transport. The newest version is not free but, we can download the older, completely-free version from here. Other downloaders that can download rtsp are trial-based software that expires after 30 days [like HiDownload, CoC's Stream Down].
Step 7: Once you install the Net Transport, click on NEW and paste the rtsp:// you want to download and it will download it to your C:\ .

Windows Media Format:
The above logic applies, except that the URL in the video clip (eg. http://) has to be replaced with mms:// and then download it. It quite likely would work on many scenarios. If it fails, see the long answer.

Long Answer:
See http://www.infocellar.com/software/streaming-media.htm. It has a lot of information on saving streaming files from a wide variety of sources/formats, along with nice detailed descriptions.

Caius Schmid

2005-06-01T12:56:00.000-05:00

Caius Schmid is a longtime physiotherapist of Roger Federer (since 1989). He was also in the Swiss team for the Davis Cup, Fed Cup and Olympics (Athens 2004) as well as for the FCB Football Basel Club.

Reto Staubli

2005-05-19T13:30:00.000-05:00

Reto Staubli, a former swiss top ten, travels frequently with Roger Federer on the road. He is an excellent hitting partner and a childhood interclub friend from the Swiss leagues.

Roger describes him in his own words:

"It's great fun, and obviously I'm also benefiting from training with such experienced players." Those were my words eight years ago in response to a question from a journalist from the Basler Zeitung the first time I got to play an NLA (Swiss national league) match for the top team at my tennis club, "Old Boys" in Basel.

I thoroughly enjoyed getting to play with big names such as Vaclav Roubicek, Patrick Mohr, Sandro della Piana and Reto Staubli.

Reto Staubli? Would that be the Reto Staubli who has been accompanying you to various tournaments - most recently Wimbledon - as your sparring partner, I hear you ask? The very same! We've been good friends ever since those interclub days.

Even then, Reto was supremely composed and in control. As number four in the team, his were one of the safest pairs of hands in terms of delivering the points. That was to be the year that we won the championship.

Source: Federer's Newsletter

More about his first club, OldBoys

Fed Mojo (aka Federer's Serve) Analyzed

2005-05-10T14:11:00.000-05:00

I ran across this excellent scanned image of a very detailed article on Tennis Magazine. These material are copyrighted and only used for display purposes. If you want to hold on to them, please contact the publisher and/or author. Rafael Font de Mora, the author is a respected coach, and he runs the ITUSA Tennis Academy. That said, see the entire action of Federer Serve.

1. When preparing to serve, first visualize the delivery you wish to hit. (Federer already knows which serve he'll use as he steps to the line.) His weight is off the front foot, and he has a slightly open stance for a serve. His front toe is angled to ease his hip and shoulder rotation. But this is more a matter of style, not fundamentals.

2. Federer keeps his weight on his back foot as his tossing arm goes out to the side of his body, facilitating shoulder and hip rotation. For his serve, it's imperative that he not let the toss get behind his body. Your toss can often determine the success of your serve. Federer's weight begins to move forward as his arms goes up. His racquet and palm are facing downward, which keeps his shoulder muscles relaxed and enables him to achieve a whip-like motion.

3. This is Federer's power position. His tossing arm is fully extended and his body is prepared to explode into the serve. His shoulders are tilted, and he's leaning forward. Notice, too, how the hitting elbow is in line with his shoulders. This will give Federer excellent throwing action. His flexed knee and hip and shoulder rotation make his serve extremely difficult to read. From this same service position and toss Federer can hit his flat, kick and slice serve to any area of the box.

4. To push off into the serve, Federer has his weight completely on his front leg. As his legs thrust upward, the racquet drops down behind his back with the face perpendicular to the ground and away from his shoulders. This will help him generate power. His non-hitting arm also drops down for the racquet to come through. And Federer's balance is perfect. Recreational players tend to break the sequence at this point by losing their balance.

5. Federer makes contact with the ball slightly to his left. Any inconsistency he has with his serve is due to letting the toss drop too far. Here, all his power has propelled him off the ground as he gets full vertical extension into the court. Good extension and natural forearm pronation are both crucial. Federer doesn't pull his head down prematurely, which is another common mistake. His tossing arm tucks in, slowing down his torso, which creates a whipping action at the top of the motion.

6. After Federer makes contact with the ball, the momentum of his swing carries him into the court. His eyes are looking forward, and his head is up for balance. His hitting arm has fully pronated while his other arm continues the stabilization process. This allows his shoulders to face his opponent head on so he can react quickly for the return. Federer, like all big servers today, lands on his front foot, which lets him either follow the serve to net or get set for a ground stroke.

Original Scanned Image as published on Tennis.com

More: Also see Federer's Serve Motion here [flash file].

Look to the stars

2005-05-10T08:54:00.000-05:00

On Apr 25 2005, I wrote on Federer Tracker:

Last weekend was Tennis Festival at Roger's club in Basel, Old Boys' Tennis Club. Rogi won an exhibition match against Marco Chiudinelli. Highlights in a video clip here and pictures here [Thanks eve]. Enjoy !

Added: The song 'Look to the stars' is played in the background of the video clip above. It had became very popular with several fans liking it very much.

The song is from a very popular swiss musical, Space Dream. They are now producing Space Dream II. 'Look to the stars' is from the Space Dream I. And you can listen to the song (mp3) here or here. Also, more picture albums here, here and there.

And the lyrics of the song:

My name is Rodin, I come from far away.
But don't worry, I'm not here to stay.
Come from a planet, Hexxor it's called.
Where I come from, every life comes from...

...the stars, look to the stars, look to the stars.
When you're deep in doubt or full of fear:
Look to the stars.

We live in worlds apart miles away.
We have the same roots, we are the same.
Deep in your soul you'll feel the connection.
For your answer look up to the...

...stars, look to the stars, look to the stars.
To find the answer, the reason why:
Look to the stars.

We have good and bad, we believe in a god.
But there's one difference:
We don't fight wars.

It's the end of a a nation when men kill men.
When we've got troubles, we ask the stars
So look to the stars, look to the stars, look to the stars.

You are a woman, but you feel like a girl:
Look to the stars.

My name is Reachel, am I really awake?
Is it a dream? Is it a fake?
Many strange things happened to me.
So much pain I had to see.

Who is this man, he confuses me so.
He's a stranger but with him I want to go.
Can I trust my eyes? Are we kindred souls?
My feelings are so strong - that can't be wrong!

Look to the stars, look to the stars, look to the stars.
When you're deep in doubt or full of fear:
Look to the stars.
Look to the stars, look to the stars, look to the stars.

Find the answer, the reason why:
Look to the stars.
Look to the stars, look to the stars, look to the stars.

You are a man, but you feel like a boy:
Look to the stars.

Entire lyrics credits to golyr.de.

Tony Roche

2005-05-09T15:23:00.000-05:00

Tony Roche, 59, (in 2005) a great Australian tennis player of yesteryears and French Open Champion in 1966, is now acting as a part-time coach for Roger since the beginning of 2005. It was after much insistence and perseverance from Federer that Roche, now home-sick after several years of travel as a coach for Ivan Lendl and Patrick Rafter, had accepted this position.

Peter Lundgren

2005-05-09T15:19:00.000-05:00

1996 - Lundgren took over Larry Stefanki as the coach for Marcelo Rios, who's game Federer very much admired. [Link]

1997 - Federer and Lundgren first met

November 2000 - Lundgren became Federer's coach

When Peter Carter didn't want to travel with him, they both thought that Lundgren would be a good coach for Federer.

By Lundgren's own admission, his seven-year partnership with Federer had
become routine and, while he was initially shaken by the player's decision
to end it, he fully understands it. "This is what happens with the kind of
relationship we had, we were so close," he said. "We did everything
together. We ate together, we went out together, we even played PlayStation
together. Now it's good for him to carry on with something else and I'm
happy to be doing something else."

An indepth interview with Roger on Peter Lundgren

Another interview

Some Pics:

Of all the places to play tennis..

2005-05-09T12:23:00.000-05:00

Federer's fascination for playing tennis on weird places (see Dubai Helipad), he spent the last weekend on the River Elbe. Hmm.. actually Federer and Haas played on a floating tennis court on the water front on River Elbe.

Federer: "It was a lot of fun and very enjoyable to play with Tommy. You could feel the waves, the court was definitely moving. It was windy, a nice fresh breeze and the surface was definitely a lot quicker than clay. We got used to it though and got some good rallies going in the end. They said 10 to 15,000 people watching from the harbour. That was fantastic."

Get more pictures from Getty & more info on ATP tennis.

What's out there?

2005-05-07T10:32:00.000-05:00

There are several fansites on the web for Roger. Below are a few of my favorites. My criterion were: frequently updated, easy to read, not too many ads. Hope you like them too !

Articles

Roger Federer profile at Tennis Server - Great articles on Roger New!

New York Times articles - Good read

Fansites
Go Roger - Excellent site, one of the best out there
Roger - one and only- Nice picture website from Silvy (fightclubber), a great fan
Roger Federer Fanclub - Swiss based fanclub for Roger

Man with Golden Racquet - A fanlisting

Earlier websites with older info
Federer Express - One of the earlier sites for roger
Federerfan - Nice pictures from 2000

Blogs
Pro Tennis Fan - Updated blog on tennis players
Federer Express Blog - A popular blog on roger

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More quality websites on Roger at Federer Bookmarks.

Pavel Kovac

2005-04-05T15:32:00.000-05:00

Czech physiotherapist Pavel Kovac travels with Roger on occasions.

Roger's comments about Kovac:

Q. How much did Czech fitness trainer Pavel Kovac help you?
Federer: Well, he's been traveling with me for over a year now. It's a pleasure to work with him. He's a very nice guy. Looking forward to work with him in the future, as well, because he did a good job.

Source Interview

Pierre Paganini

2005-04-05T15:07:00.000-05:00

Pierre Paganini, a former athlete and soccer player, is the fitness trainer (condition coach) for Roger as well as for Swiss Davis Cup team. His contact info.

One of his rare interviews. [in German, English version]
Tennis Magazine's article on Pierre Paganini.
Video Clip of an Interview [in French, Real Media][Transcript in English]

His comments on Roger:

Paganini has been helping Federer make tennis look easy for the last 10 years and together they put in 100 hours of fitness training throughout the season, either at tournaments or when Federer is at home in Switzerland. They do a combination of strength and endurance work, circuit training, running and a wide range of exercises designed to practice all the movements Federer is likely to make on a tennis court.

Prior to a big tournament they will work for 10 hours a week or more, depending on the surface he is going to play on, but Paganini says he never hears so much as a murmur of fuss from Federer. "Roger is a pleasure and a privilege to work with," said Paganini. "He never complains about having to work hard as long as he understands why he is doing it. He asks me what we are doing and why and then he gets to work. He knows that he is talented and that the fitness work we do is going to bring that talent through. "He's always been the same. You can have all the shots but if you aren't there in time it doesn't matter and Roger knows that. Even when I am really tough on him he never stops working and he never wants to stop. That's the kind of man he is and that's why he is a champion. He really is an amazing person."

Source

A Guide to Federer's Playing Style

2005-03-17T14:22:00.000-05:00

Federermagic reader Arnab Zaheen writes a well-researched article on Federer's genuine shotmaking ability.

Summary
Federer possesses outstanding control over his racket speed, angle and topspin. Aided further by superior anticipation and unusually quick movement, he can subtly dictate the momentum and the direction of the game. He also shows rare mental adaptability and stroke-making versatility as he is known to switch his playing style in the middle of a match or tweak a few things in his game to outsmart and outplay his opponents. He displays unusual calm and an uncommon lack of visible frustration when he makes errors, perhaps a result of his confidence in his unmatched abilties.

Service
Federer's serves are relatively fast, hovering around 120mph. More important than the speed of his serve is his deceptive ability to produce them accurately at different angles and bounces using the same serving motion, a skill that was perfected by Pete Sampras. The Guardian points out that "[Federer's] brightest jewels [are] slow-motion aces, objects of beauty because the rare combination of insidious accuracy and slick disguise [makes] great speed redundant."¹

Service Return
Federer is also exceptional at reading fast serves and returning them. He doesn't punish services with his returns like Andre Agassi does, and seems to prefer the steadier slice or bunt that neutralizes the server's advantage, but his anticipation and ability to read the service appears equal to or superior to Agassi's. During Wimbledon 2003, Sports Illustrated magazine noted the following about Federer's return game against Andy Roddick, the fastest server in the history of tennis: "Federer has a knack for reading Roddick's serve, getting enough of his racket on them to cut down on aces. Roddick had only a pair of aces in each of the first two sets and none in the third. He had 64 aces in his five matches on the way to the semis." ²

Forehand and Backhand
Federer has technically flawless forehand and backhand shots that he can unleash with great power, often at speeds near 100mph, anywhere on the court, prompting many commentators to exclaim that he makes the court look smaller or that he reduces tennis to mere ping-pong. He is one of the few top players who play with a one-handed backhand. Rod Laver is especially fond of the Federer backhand and says that it "is the best shot he plays, as he can roll his racket over the top of the ball, or hit it straight. I don't know how he manages to hit the ball so cleanly all the time."³

Shotmaking in Exceptional Circumstances
Federer usually plays with moderate aggression and doesn't go for the dominant shots all the time. Like all great players, he has a knack for creating all kinds of spectacular shots when pushed into compromising positions, usually when an opponent approaches the net expecting easy putaways. But Federer's responses are probably far more varied then any other player in the history of the game: looping crosscourt backhand passes, wristy and instinctive backhand pickups from the midcourt placed at very acute angles, exceptionally accurate down-the-line backhand passing shots while on the run, a heavily-topspinned forehand crosscourt pull from the baseline that, upon bounce, spins and fades away from lunging opponents, crushing forehand shots from the baseline that land inside the service box and speed away, and more.

Defense
Federer has great defense at the back of the court and is exceptionally good at returning deep, close-to-the-baseline shots from his opponents with effortless, Andre Agassi-like but even better, instinctive half-volleys and John McEnroe-like behind-the-body backhand flick returns. He is among the best in the world - one might say on par with Lleyton Hewitt, but without the gritty terrier-like tenacity and with nonchalant grace at chasing down his opponents' dominant baseline shots and keeping balls in play. Federer is, however, not entirely invincible at the baseline and shows vulnerability (and incidentally, a rare room for improvement) at his backhand side. There are times, though seldom, when an opponent can force errors from Federer's backhand defensive shots either by pounding relentless, accurate, flat and deep shots at his backhand corner (exposed against Marat Safin on hardcourt at the Australian Open 2005 semi-final) or by employing high-bouncing topsin shots at the same corner (exposed against Rafael Nadal on clay at the French Open 2005 semi-final).

Deliberative Shotmaking
In addition to these, he deliberately "mixes up" his game to keep his opponents guessing all the time. One of his more creative shots while not under pressure is a beautifully executed, both feet on the air, inside-out forehand from his backhand side generated using a unique, almost-complete lateral rotation of his torso --- a shot that he uses selectively for more power and angle instead of using the stock backhand. He has also reintroduced the backhand slice in fast courts to deliberately slow down the tempo of the game, and it serves well for the seemingly "cat-and-mouse" games he plays with his opponents. He is also adept at unexpectantly producing dying, back-spinning dropshots at the foot of the net, both forehand and backhand, and often employs them successfully from the back of the court against the fastest runners and anticipators in the game. Furthermore, his flexibility and quickness allow him to hit clean winners with perfect racket preparation and positioning - even when he is facing low-bouncing balls at the midcourt.

At the Net
Federer's playing style at the net, like the rest of his game, rarely seems rushed or fidgety. He almost always makes sure-footed steps at the net. At times his flexibility allows him to make galloping strides to his left or right and help himself in positions to make seemingly effortless volleys from well below the net level. And the volleys themselves are exquisitely executed, especially the stop-volleys. Federer often employs the right amount of backspin on his stop-volleys so that after the ball barely clears the net and lands on the other side, it either stops dead with minimal bounce or, to the further frustration of his opponent, backspins. This explains why Federer doesn't usually have prolonged net enounters with his opponents. He likes to finish off his net points early. The lack of such encounters, however, may prove to be his Achilles' Heel during crucial points against an opponent who is extremely quick to reach the net and who thrives at the prospect of making agile, instinctive counterpunch in such situations. Federer's sure-footedness and effortless pickups at the net reminds one of Sampras, whereas the crisp, timely execution of volleys are reminiscent of Stefan Edberg, who is incidentally one of Federer's childhood idols. Federer's net game is most suited for grass, and it has helped him capture three back-to-back Wimbledon titles.

The Feel and other Intangibles
Federer also demonstrates uncanny disguise in his ability to hold the point of contact with the ball (and consequentially his opponent) a split second longer. In the absence of anticipatory cues, Federer's opponents cannot readily get a jump on his shots. He can play down the line or crosscourt off the identical stance and seemingly identical swing - directing the ball either left or right by a subtle change in timing. As his ATP peer Tim Henman points out: "I can watch when I'm playing him and there are certain times where I will hit a shot, I will be at the net and it almost looks he's got a split second longer than most other players...Sometimes he comes across to hit a backhand pass when you feel like you've hit a good approach and it's like he has got a bit longer to hit it." ⁴

Federer's mastery, beyond being able to hit all shots and angles, combines a number of intangible factors, including fluid strokes with little mental interference, genius in constructing points, seamless transitions from defense to offense, an intuitive understanding of his opponent's options and likely responses, and a clear, calm mind that executes instantly. As he commented after the Australian Open 2004 final win against Safin: "I feel when a guy is going to hit the ball, I know exactly with the angles and the spins, I just feel that I've got that figured out. And that is just a huge advantage."⁵ Fellow ATP player Ivan Ljubicic also points out that "[Federer] usually tries to hit winner[sic] at the beginning of game which causes panic in his opponent. After that, he patiently waits for his opportunity or hits winner[sic] when needed."⁶

Note 1: Jago, Richard (Jan 8, 2005). Cool Federer forges ahead
Note 2: Sports Illustrated (Jul 4, 2003) Switzerland's Federer exposes holes in Roddick's game
Note 3: Hodgkinson, Mark (Nov 13, 2004). "Federer can be the greatest" - Laver
Note 4: Tennis News (Jan 15, 2005). Henman in Awe of "Incredible" Federer
Note 5: Transcribed Interview (Feb 1, 2004). An interview with Roger Federer
Note 6: Ljubicic, Ivan (Jan 8, 2005) Tough without the serve

[cross-hosted at Wikipedia; updated 06-Nov-2005]

Young Federer in pictures ..oo Baby Blue..

2005-02-24T15:47:00.000-05:00

An attempt to collect early days of rogi in pictures. [click for bigger pictures]

As a kid

Notes: Third picture taken in '94 (with Marco Chiudinelli, & Peter Carter). Thanks M.

Junior Days

Notes: Sixth and Seventh pics (Thanks M.) taken in '99. Last one thanks to Mrs.B

His Family

Notes: With his father (Robert), mother (Lynette) and elder sister (Diana).

Courtesy of several wonderful MTFers & Google.

Extra Extra..

2005-02-23T09:54:00.000-05:00

Incase, you haven't seen it yet,

A brief stub:

DUBAI, UAE - FEBRUARY 22: In preparation for the Dubai Duty Free Men's Open, tennis legend Andre Agassi of the USA and the World's No. 1 Roger Federer of Switzerland, couldn't resist the temptation to have a friendly 'hit' on the world's most unique tennis court, the Helipad of the Burj Al Arab, the world's most luxurious hotel on February 22, 2005, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates Standing 321 metres high on a man made island, the majestic Burj Al Arab is without doubt the most recognizable hotel in the world. The hotel's helipad, which is situated 211 metres high covers a surface area of 415 square metres...

Check it out at: Getty Images

Watch a 1-minute video of the spectacular tennis event here or here.

if you cannot open it,
1. Open your Windows Media Player and
2. Click File -> Open URL -> and paste this

Another video clip here.

Roger Federer & Mirka Pictures

2005-02-04T15:02:00.000-05:00

Some pictures of Roger Federer and his longtime girlfriend, Miroslava 'Mirka' Vavrinec. Aint they cute? ;) Click on the pictures for a bigger one

More: Pictures of Mirka and her bio

Courtesy of several wonderful MTF'ers.

Clips of Roger Federer in Slow Motion

2005-01-31T16:38:00.000-05:00

A few video clips to illustrate the genius of Roger Federer. These videos were taken during Wimbledon 2004 with cutting-edge 1000 frames/sec super slow-motion camera. [courtesy of the british govt funding and shown on BBC.]

Federer's "Screaming" Forehand [.mpg 12.7MB Download]

Yet another shot of the lethal Forehand. [.avi 8.1MB Download]

Ever improving one-handed backhand. [.avi 8.4MB Download]

Entire credit to JustMeUK [aka AndyC] for the clips. His website.

If the video wont play in windows media player due to missing codecs, I suggest you to install the open-source codec finder: fffshow (it is totally free). Just install it and play the .avi file. I have ffdshow installed too. Let me know if you get any problems.

Do see the two video files of the Federer's Forehand [front, rear] in .mov format. (thanks peace)

Also check out the Wikipedia entry for Roger Federer.

ATP Tsunami Charity Auction

2005-01-18T16:48:00.000-05:00

ATP Tsunami Charity Auction website is up.

Roger Federer, Andy Roddick and Lleyton Hewitt, all of whom have held the year-end No. 1 ranking the past four years, have donated autographed match rackets to benefit UNICEF's tsunami relief effort. The Wilson, Babolat and Yonex rackets used and autographed by Federer, Roddick and Hewitt respectively will be mounted together in one framed presentation case and accompanied by an ATP letter of authenticity.

Bidding closes on Friday, Jan. 28, at 5 p.m. EDT in Australia, 6 a.m. GMT in Europe and 1 a.m. ET in the USA.

See the All Star Rally Video here

Roger's First Coach & Hometown Club

2005-01-18T14:13:00.000-05:00

Roger's first coach is Seppli Kacovsky, who he met at the Old Boys' Tennis Club in Federer's home town of Basel in northern Switzerland.

He joined Old Boys' when he was eight years old and was coached by Kacovsky until '94. And here's a picture of Roger in '92 with his club-mates at Old Boys'.

[click the above picture
for a bigger better one
from OBTC]

Seppli describing Roger winning Wimbledon '03 experience as, "Roger showed some tears at the prize ceremony and I must say that I have tears too.. I think it's fantastic not just for Roger but for the Old Boys' Club and tennis as a whole in Switzerland..This is unique what he has done. I thought he could win it from the quarter-finals and I am so pleased.."

All about Gear !!

2005-01-12T16:58:00.000-05:00

An insider peak into Roger Federer's gear.

Racquets

Wilson nSix-One Tour 90
Grip size: 4 3/8 [L3]
Look alike or for real is debatable

Strings

1.3 mm Babolat VS Natural ThermoGut 16 Touch [main]
1.25mm Luxilon Big Banger ALU Power Rough 16L [cross]
24 - 28 kg (50-60 lbs) tension [depends on court conditions]
Each strung racquet had a total of 10 string savers inserted, in a crisscross pattern across the five center main strings and the fourth and sixth cross strings. more

Over Grips - Wilson Pro Overgrip White
String Savers - Babolat ElastoCross 2

Tennis Bags - Wilson Tour 4 Red
Duffle Bags - Nike Tennis

Shoes - Nike Air Zoom Vapor Speed (46 Euro or 12 US )
Clothing - Nike
Watch - Maurice Lacroix
Headband - Nike Swoosh Bandana
Wristband - Nike 2 Swoosh Double-Wide Wristband Wh/Bk
_______

Detailed picture of Federer's gear [from Vogue Magazine for Men; Thanks mirkaland].

Click for a bigger picture.

Roger Federer in 2005

2005-01-07T16:12:00.000-05:00

Biggest question right now in the minds of federer fans (or any curious tennis fan) is,

Will 2005 bring federer the revered grand slam?

Ever since he won 3 out of the 4 grand slams in '04, it has become an inevitable question. Here's a look back in the history of the champions who won 3 or more...

		Australian Open	French Open	Wimbledon	US Open
Rod Laver	1969	W	W	W	W
	1970	-	-	4r	4r
Jimmy Connors	1974	W	-	W	W
	1975	F	-	F	F
Mats Wilander	1988	W	W	QF	W
	1989	2r	QF	QF	2r
Roger Federer	2004	W	3r	W	W
	2005	SF	SF	W	W

Unfortunately, none of them has won a grand slam after their stellar year. Let's see what '05 might bring to Roger Federer. Anyways, we atleast know, he's up against history to buck this trend. Go Roger !!!

Update:
Now that he gone down bravely against M. Safin in a five-setter, all the pressure of completing of a grand slam is over. This should considerably ease-up the public expectations, to allow Federer to play his natural game. He has already won 2 titles [Doha, Rotterdam]. A fine start, i would say. Won't you agree?

Update2:
Wow. After going down against Rafa, federer worked his magic for a tripeat at Wimby!!

Update3:
Roger wooed his magic to beat Andre Agassi at the Final. Wow.

History of Grand Slams and The Champions List

2005-01-07T15:48:00.000-05:00

An extract from Wikipedia.

The first championships at Wimbledon, in London were played in 1877. The U.S. National Men's Singles Championship, now the U.S. Open, was first held in 1881 at Newport, Rhode Island.

In 1926, a group of American tennis players established a professional tennis circuit, playing exhibition matches to paying audiences. For 40 years professional and amateur tennis remained strictly separate. In 1968 however, commercial pressures led to the abandonment of this distinction, inaugurating the Open era, in which all players could compete in all tournaments, and top players made their living from tennis.

Thus Wimbledon, the U.S. Open, the French Open (since 1891) and the Australian Open (dating to 1905) became and have remained the most prestigious events in tennis. Together these four events are called the Grand Slam (a term borrowed from bridge).

Winning the Grand Slam, by capturing these four titles in one calendar year, is the highest ambition of most tennis players.

Also, a handy-dandy list of the Champions of all-time.

Pre-Open Era Champions

Year	Australian Open	French Open	Wimbledon	US Open
1877	-	-	Spencer Gore	-
1878	-	-	Frank Hadlow	-
1879	-	-	John Hartley	-
1880	-	-	John Hartley	-
1881	-	-	William Renshaw	Richard Sears
1882	-	-	William Renshaw	Richard Sears
1883	-	-	William Renshaw	Richard Sears
1884	-	-	William Renshaw	Richard Sears
1885	-	-	William Renshaw	Richard Sears
1886	-	-	William Renshaw	Richard Sears
1887	-	-	Herbert Lawford	Richard Sears
1888	-	-	Ernest Renshaw	Henry Slocum Jr
1889	-	-	William Renshaw	Henry Slocum Jr
1890	-	-	Willoughby Hamilton	Oliver Campbell
1891	-	-	Wilfred Baddeley	Oliver Campbell
1892	-	-	Wilfred Baddeley	Oliver Campbell
1893	-	-	Joshua Pim	Robert Wrenn
1894	-	-	Joshua Pim	Robert Wrenn
1895	-	-	Wilfred Baddeley	Fred Hovey
1896	-	-	Harold Mahoney	Robert Wrenn
1897	-	-	Reginald Doherty	Robert Wrenn
1898	-	-	Reginald Doherty	Malcolm Whitman
1899	-	-	Reginald Doherty	Malcolm Whitman
1900	-	-	Reginald Doherty	Malcolm Whitman
1901	-	-	Arthur Gore	William Larned
1902	-	-	Lawrence Doherty	William Larned
1903	-	-	Lawrence Doherty	Lawrence Doherty
1904	-	-	Lawrence Doherty	Holcombe Ward
1905	Rodney Heath	-	Lawrence Doherty	Beals Wright
1906	Anthony Wilding	-	Lawrence Doherty	William Clothier
1907	Horace Rice	-	Norman Brookes	William Larned
1908	Fred Alexander	-	Arthur Gore	William Larned
1909	Anthony Wilding	-	Arthur Gore	William Larned
1910	Rodney Heath	-	Anthony Wilding	William Larned
1911	Norman Brookes	-	Anthony Wilding	William Larned
1912	Cecil Parke	-	Anthony Wilding	Maurice McLoughlin
1913	E F Parker	-	Anthony Wilding	Maurice McLoughlin
1914	Pat O'Hara Wood	-	Norman Brookes	Norris Williams
1915	Francis Lowe	-	-	Bill Johnston
1916	-	-	-	Norris Williams
1917	-	-	-	Lindley Murray
1918	-	-	-	Lindley Murray
1919	A R F Kingscote	-	Gerald Patterson	Bill Johnston
1920	Pat O'Hara Wood	-	Bill Tilden	Bill Tilden
1921	Rhys Gemmell	-	Bill Tilden	Bill Tilden
1922	James Anderson	-	Gerald Patterson	Bill Tilden
1923	Pat O'Hara Wood	-	Bill Johnston	Bill Tilden
1924	James Anderson	-	Jean Borotra	Bill Tilden
1925	James Anderson	René Lacoste	René Lacoste	Bill Tilden
1926	John Hawkes	Henri Cochet	Jean Borotra	René Lacoste
1927	Gerald Patterson	René Lacoste	Henri Cochet	René Lacoste
1928	Jean Borotra	Henri Cochet	René Lacoste	Henri Cochet
1929	John Gregory	René Lacoste	Henri Cochet	Bill Tilden
1930	Gar Moon	Henri Cochet	Bill Tilden	John Doeg
1931	Jack Crawford	Jean Borotra	Sid Wood	Ellsworth Vines
1932	Jack Crawford	Henri Cochet	Ellsworth Vines	Ellsworth Vines
1933	Jack Crawford	Jack Crawford	Jack Crawford	Fred Perry
1934	Fred Perry	Gottfried von Cramm	Fred Perry	Fred Perry
1935	Jack Crawford	Fred Perry	Fred Perry	Wilmer Allison
1936	Adrian Quist	Gottfried von Cramm	Fred Perry	Fred Perry
1937	V B McGrath	Henner Henkel	Don Budge	Don Budge
1938	Don Budge	Don Budge	Don Budge	Don Budge
1939	John Bromwich	Donald McNeil	Bobby Riggs	Bobby Riggs
1940	Adrian Quist	-	-	Donald McNeil
1941	-	-	-	Bobby Riggs
1942	-	-	-	Ted Schroeder
1943	-	-	-	Joe Hunt
1944	-	-	-	Frank Parker
1945	-	-	-	Frank Parker
1946	John Bromwich	Marcel Bernard	Yvon Petra	Jack Kramer
1947	Dinny Pails	Jozsef Asboth	Jack Kramer	Jack Kramer
1948	Adrian Quist	Frank Parker	Bob Falkenburg	Pancho Gonzales
1949	Frank Sedgman	Frank Parker	Ted Schroeder	Pancho Gonzales
1950	Frank Sedgman	Budge Patty	Budge Patty	Art Larsen
1951	Dick Savitt	Jaroslav Drobny	Dick Savitt	Frank Sedgman
1952	Ken McGregor	Jaroslav Drobny	Frank Sedgman	Frank Sedgman
1953	Ken Rosewall	Ken Rosewall	Vic Seixas	Tony Trabert
1954	Mervyn Rose	Tony Trabert	Jaroslav Drobny	Vic Seixas
1955	Ken Rosewall	Tony Trabert	Tony Trabert	Tony Trabert
1956	Lew Hoad	Lew Hoad	Lew Hoad	Ken Rosewall
1957	Ashley Cooper	Sven Davidson	Lew Hoad	Mal Anderson
1958	Ashley Cooper	Mervyn Rose	Ashley Cooper	Ashley Cooper
1959	Alex Olmedo	Nicola Pietrangeli	Alex Olmedo	Neale Fraser
1960	Rod Laver	Nicola Pietrangeli	Neale Fraser	Neale Fraser
1961	Roy Emerson	Manuel Santana	Rod Laver	Roy Emerson
1962	Rod Laver	Rod Laver	Rod Laver	Rod Laver
1963	Roy Emerson	Roy Emerson	Chuck McKinley	Rafael Osuna
1964	Roy Emerson	Manuel Santana	Roy Emerson	Roy Emerson
1965	Roy Emerson	Fred Stolle	Roy Emerson	Manuel Santana
1966	Roy Emerson	Tony Roche	Manuel Santana	Fred Stolle
1967	Roy Emerson	Roy Emerson	John Newcombe	John Newcombe

Open Era Champions

Year	Australian Open	French Open	Wimbledon	US Open
1968	Bill Bowrey	Ken Rosewall	Rod Laver	Arthur Ashe
1969	Rod Laver	Rod Laver	Rod Laver	Rod Laver
1970	Arthur Ashe	Jan Kodes	John Newcombe	Ken Rosewall
1971	Ken Rosewall	Jan Kodes	John Newcombe	Stan Smith
1972	Ken Rosewall	Andrés Gimeno	Stan Smith	Ilie Nastase
1973	John Newcombe	Ilie Nastase	Jan Kodes	John Newcombe
1974	Jimmy Connors	Björn Borg	Jimmy Connors	Jimmy Connors
1975	John Newcombe	Björn Borg	Arthur Ashe	Manuel Orantes
1976	Mark Edmondson	Adriano Panatta	Björn Borg	Jimmy Connors
1977	Roscoe Tanner	Guillermo Vilas	Björn Borg	Guillermo Vilas
1977	Vitas Gerulaitis
1978	Guillermo Vilas	Björn Borg	Björn Borg	Jimmy Connors
1979	Guillermo Vilas	Björn Borg	Björn Borg	John McEnroe
1980	Brian Teacher	Björn Borg	Björn Borg	John McEnroe
1981	Johan Kriek	Björn Borg	John McEnroe	John McEnroe
1982	Johan Kriek	Mats Wilander	Jimmy Connors	Jimmy Connors
1983	Mats Wilander	Yannick Noah	John McEnroe	Jimmy Connors
1984	Mats Wilander	Ivan Lendl	John McEnroe	John McEnroe
1985	Stefan Edberg	Mats Wilander	Boris Becker	Ivan Lendl
1986	-	Ivan Lendl	Boris Becker	Ivan Lendl
1987	Stefan Edberg	Ivan Lendl	Pat Cash	Ivan Lendl
1988	Mats Wilander	Mats Wilander	Stefan Edberg	Mats Wilander
1989	Ivan Lendl	Michael Chang	Boris Becker	Boris Becker
1990	Ivan Lendl	Andrés Gómez	Stefan Edberg	Pete Sampras
1991	Boris Becker	Jim Courier	Michael Stich	Stefan Edberg
1992	Jim Courier	Jim Courier	Andre Agassi	Stefan Edberg
1993	Jim Courier	Sergi Bruguera	Pete Sampras	Pete Sampras
1994	Pete Sampras	Sergi Bruguera	Pete Sampras	Andre Agassi
1995	Andre Agassi	Thomas Muster	Pete Sampras	Pete Sampras
1996	Boris Becker	Yevgeny Kafelnikov	Richard Krajicek	Pete Sampras
1997	Pete Sampras	Gustavo Kuerten	Pete Sampras	Patrick Rafter
1998	Petr Korda	Carlos Moya	Pete Sampras	Patrick Rafter
1999	Yevgeny Kafelnikov	Andre Agassi	Pete Sampras	Andre Agassi
2000	Andre Agassi	Gustavo Kuerten	Pete Sampras	Marat Safin
2001	Andre Agassi	Gustavo Kuerten	Goran Ivanisevic	Lleyton Hewitt
2002	Thomas Johansson	Albert Costa	Lleyton Hewitt	Pete Sampras
2003	Andre Agassi	Juan Carlos Ferrero	Roger Federer	Andy Roddick
2004	Roger Federer	Gastón Gaudio	Roger Federer	Roger Federer

Roger Federer's Girlfriend - Miroslava 'Mirka' Vavrinec

2004-12-28T14:05:00.000-05:00

Roger Federer met his long-time girlfriend, Mirka Vavrinec, at Syndey 2000 Olympics, when they both were representing Switzerland. And ever since then, they are inseparable.

Some interesting trivia:

Mirka Vavrinec was born in Slovakia.
She emigrated as a 2 years old.
Mirka is three years older than Roger.
Her highest WTA singles ranking is 76 (on Sep '01).
Navratilova introduced Mirka to tennis when she was nine.
Her parents own a Jewellery and live in Schaffhausen.

Bookmarks on Miroslava:

Profiles for Mirka Vavrinec

WTA player profile for Vavrinec
ITF profile

Tennis Corner's detailed profile

Compile of pictures: [click on a picture for a bigger one]

Thanks to getty images and several MTF'ers.

Interesting News Burb:

In 1987, when Mirka was nine, her father took her to watch a tournament at Filderstadt in Germany. The event coincided with Navratilova's birthday, and Mirka's father, a huge fan, managed to hand her a present. He had his daughter by his side and Navratilova asked the youngster if she played tennis. No, she'd never tried it. Navratilova said she looked athletic and ought to give it a whirl.

There the exchange might have ended had it not been for Navratilova's immense generosity of spirit. When she discovered that the Vavrinecs - who originally came from Slovakia - lived in Zurich, she phoned a friend there and arranged Mirka's first tennis lesson. Later, she sent one of her rackets from America for Mirka to use. And her instincts proved remarkably astute. By 2000, Mirka was in the top 100 players in the world and in Switzerland's team for the Sydney Olympics. It was there that she met Federer.

A year later, Mirka was forced to retire because of a persistent foot injury, but Federer enjoys the story of her introduction to tennis. He likes the idea that it was Navratilova who, in a way, brought them together.

Source: Independent Article

More: Pics of Federer and Mirka together.

Feel the touch !!

2004-12-28T10:17:00.000-05:00

Roger Federer's line of cosmetics (RF Cosmetics) is now available in continental US. Yeeha !!!

Tennis Express is the official distributor of the goodies. Goodies include: After Shave Balm, Body Wash, Deodorant Stick, Eau De Toilette Spray. Or if you are feeling lucky, you can go for the Limited Edition Set.

Roger Federer Limited Edition Set includes the Eau De Toilette Spray, After Shave Balm, Deodorant Stick, and Body Wash. Also includes an autograph card personally signed by Roger Federer as well a can of four Roger Federer US Open tennis balls ...

Take a look and who knows, maybe it just was the thing that was missing out here !!

Introducing Roger Federer.. (aka bio, biography or profile)

2004-12-22T13:52:00.000-05:00

Here's an attempt to sketch Roger Federer's non-tennis personality.

Born: August 8, 1981 at Münchenstein, Basel, Switzerland
Residence: Oberwil, Switzerland

Height: 186 cm
Weight: 84 kg
Hair: Dark Brown
Eyes: Brown

Nicknames: Rogi, Federer Express
Hobbies: Sports, Movies, Fishing, Skiing, Playstation, Cards

Favorites:
Food: Mozzarella di buffala, Gnocchi, Gorgonzola, Sausage, Cheese
Cereal: Rice Crispies
Ice Cream: Strawberry
Colors: Blue, Red, White
Artists: AC/DC, Lenny Kravitz
Movies: Good Will Hunting, Entrapment, Enemy of the State
Sportstars: FC Basel, Zinedine Zidane, Francesco Totti, Michael Jordan, Lennox Lewis, Peter Forsberg

Qualities Most Admired: Smile a lot, Friendly, Helpful
Personal Motto: It's nice to be important, but it's important to be nice

Funny Tennis Memory: "I was playing a friend named Marco when I was 14. Playing in Basel. And it was like six o' clock. And this bird just goes on the net. My friend - he didn't see the bird - and he starts serving. And he serves...and the little bird, Boom! Right on the body. The bird fell on my side of the net. And it was on the ground, like shaking, then, Boom, dead. Feathers all over the court. He didn't know what happened. I'm like, Stop, stop! There's a bird on the net. And he goes, Boom, and just hits it. That was unbelievable."

Early Tennis Memory: "I remember always loving to play against the cupboards, against the doors at home. With any kind of ball...soft ball, tennis ball. My mom always got pissed off at me, because, Bang, bang, bang!, all day long."

For a detailed tennis biography of Federer, visit jockbio [Link]

Who Coachth the Federer?

2004-12-17T16:45:00.000-05:00

A brief stub on Federer and his coaches/clubs.

Coaches:

'89 - '91 - Seppli Kacovsky
'92 - ' 94, '97 - '98 - Peter Carter
'99 - '03 - Peter Lundgren
'05 - current - Tony Roche

Tennis Clubs:

'87 - '89 - Ciba Klybeck, Allschwil, Swizterland [Link, More]
'89 - '94 - Old Boys Tennis Club, Basel, Swizterland [Link]
'95 - '96 - National Tennis Academy, Ecublens, Swizterland [Link]
'97 - '98 - National Centre of Swiss Tennis Association, Biel, Swizterland [Link]

Who is Peter Carter?

2004-12-16T13:52:00.000-05:00

Any tennis fan who loves Roger Federer, can associate Roger's love for his former tennis coach, Peter Carter. Here is a tribute along with some snipets on Peter Carter.

Peter 'Carts' Carter (Aug 9, 1964 - Aug 1, 2002) grew up in the Barossa in a tennis loving family of Bob and Diana Carter. He would trail along to the courts with his parents and two older brothers. When he was 12, he was playing A grade, then at 15 he moved to Adelaide to live with coach Peter Smith, the man who played a part in many famous careers, including John Fitzgerald, Darren Cahill, Brod Dyke and Lleyton Hewitt. In words of his coach, Peter Smith, "He was a little younger than Fitzy and Brod Dyke but in terms of Mark and Darren who were about the same age, I think people considered him to be the best of that particular group." One of Peter's most memorable wins was when he defeated John Alexander while he was still at school.

He then went on the ATP circuit, but dogged by injury, he eventually ended up coaching in Switzerland, where he met the young Roger Federer. His dad, Bob, recalls: He said to me one night when he rang "Oh, have I got a young boy here who looks promising, "he's only about 12 or 13". He said, "I think he's going to go places.". And that was Roger Federer.

Peter coached Roger through his formative teenage years till he turned pro. He was popular in Switzerland and eventually became the country's Davis Cup coach and captain. His mom recalls: "And the team actually refused to play unless he was the captain, at one stage."

Peter's life seemed complete when he met his wife swiss-born, Sylvia, but shortly afterwards she was diagnosed with cancer. After a 12-month battle last year she was cleared of the disease. They travelled to South Africa to celebrate. But, while travelling in separate cars, Peter died of injuries sustained in a car accident, as his Land Rover crashed near the Kruger National Park . He was 37 by then. Roger Federer was playing in Toronto '02. After losing in the first round to eventual champion Guillermo Canas, he learnt of the sad news. Roger said: "I was very shocked and very sad when I found out. He was a very close friend. This is the first time a close friend of mine has died." ... [source]

Peter Carter is now remembered as part of the Carter Altman Penfold Fund. The charity known as CAP helps children with disabilities play sport and remembers two other tennis players, Nick Altman and Jeff Penfold. Also, the clash of Australia & Switzerland in Davis Cup is named as Peter Carter Trophy, which Australia won in Dec '03 Davis cup final.

Bob Carter on Federer: "Obviously Roger [Federer] has got enormous talent, but I am sure, and I can see it in his game, what's there Peter would have taught him. The serve volley and the slice and the variety in his game, that's how Peter played. I'm sure that is showing out in Roger now." [source]

Federer on Peter Carter: "Peter wasn't my first coach, but he was my real coach. I made trips with him. He knew me and my game, and he was always thinking of what was good for me." [source]

Adapted from: Partick Emmett's Report

More Info:

Sunday Times Report of the accident [Link]
Peter Cater's Player Profile & Matches [Link]
SwissInfo Article on Peter Carter [Link]
BBC Article on Peter Carter [Link]
Roger talks about Peter after winning Wimbledon [Link]

Federer Schedule for 2005

2004-12-13T16:41:00.000-05:00

Jan 03: Doha
Jan 10: Kooyong
Jan 17: Australian Open
Feb 14: Rotterdam
Feb 21: Dubai
Mar 07: Indian Wells
Mar 21: Miami
Apr 11: Monte Carlo
May 02: Rome
May 09: Hamburg
May 23: Roland Garros
Jun 06: Halle
Jun 20: Wimbledon
Aug 08: Montreal
Aug 15: Cincinnati
Aug 29: US Open
Sep 23: Davis Cup
Sep 26: Bangkok
Oct 17: Madrid
Oct 24: Basel
Oct 31: Paris
Nov 12: TMC Shanghai

Good luck, Roger !!

Update: Schedule for second half of 2005 has been out at RF.com

Cool Sites

2004-12-07T17:28:00.000-05:00

If you want a gmail account.. add your name and email address to the comment. I will send an invite ASAP. If you want to know what is gmail, visit gmail.com

Also see, Roger Federer Foundation