The fact that Federer lost again is sad, but not spectacular. The fact that he lost this particular semifinal match with Djokovic though is tragic. After the Serb abruptly ended his Australian Open campaign, the Swiss champion had a tough time recapturing his winning ways. These eight months marked the darkest period since 2002, as he reached only two finals, at Dubai where he succumbed once more to the Serb and Roland Garros where he lost to Nadal.
Before the encounter with Novak, he seemed in good form. Of course one shouldn't get his hopes up, but, although his North American hardcourt preparation has been poor, Roger showed glimpses of genius during the first rounds of the US Open. He even raised his game to such an extent that he disposed of Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, a player to whom he suffered two consecutive defeats, among them the painful Wimbledon loss. It's now clear that Federer is a man of patterns. When he was at the peak of his career, he used to fall to lower ranked Nalbandian. After that, he developed a sort of a Nadal fobia, losing most of his battles with his Spanish rival. Now, the latest Federer trend is to lose a match after being 2 sets to love up. He did it at Wimbledon against an inspired Tsonga and he was keen of keeping things going at Flushing Meadow.
An exceptionally sharp Roger quickly set up a 2 sets advantage against the newly crowned world number 1 in their semifinal meeting. A tenacious Djokovic fought back, cruising through the next two to take the match into a decider. Federer recaptured his composer and at 4-3, he pulled the trigger and got what ought to be the vital break. Serving for a well deserved place in the final, the Swiss 'managed' to throw everything away, missing two match points and allowing his opponent to break right back. The momentum switched decisively in Novak's favour, as the Serb went on to win the match 7-5 in the fifth set. For the second year running, Federer blew away match points to end up losing his US Open semifinal clash with Djokovic.
It's not so much the fact that he is losing his battles with Nadal or Novak. It's more the way these matches unfold. Almost every time, the Swiss is the one dictating the outcome. He looks firmly set for a victory but at one point something happens and the victory slips away. There is too much drama associated to him and to his on court performances nowadays. The once smooth progress through the draws has transformed into a 110 metres hurdles. Unfortunately for Roger, he stumbles just before the first line, having led most of the race.
It's not so much the fact that he is losing his battles with Nadal or Novak. It's more the way these matches unfold. Almost every time, the Swiss is the one dictating the outcome. He looks firmly set for a victory but at one point something happens and the victory slips away. There is too much drama associated to him and to his on court performances nowadays. The once smooth progress through the draws has transformed into a 110 metres hurdles. Unfortunately for Roger, he stumbles just before the first line, having led most of the race.
photo: GETTY IMAGES
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