Thoughts after Wimbledon 2009

After a grueling five set match, that was the longest in Wimbledon history, Andy Roddick was once again defeated by Roger Federer 5-7 7-6 (8-6) 7-6 (7-5) 3-6 16-14. You might not agree with what I’m about to say, but I think the better tennis player did not win on Sunday, July 5, 2009. Roger Federer, in my opinion, is just way too arrogant. He practically called his fifteenth victory on Sunday before the match even started. He actually had a jacket with the number 15 on the back, which he wore after the match. He probably wasn’t even expecting Andy Roddick to put up much of a fight.
During Federer’s acceptance speech, he said “well Nadal wasn’t here.” Hence the arrogance. In my opinion, that statement indicated that Federer thought Nadal’s presence may have stopped him from winning number 15. Helloooo Federer, you almost lost Sunday!!!! You only got lucky in the end. The better statement would have been “Nadal may not have been here, but I played the best today.” And don’t even get me started on how overly emotional Federer can get. The last time he was defeated by Nadal the grown man actually broke down and cried and pretty much stole the show from Nadal.
Then there’s Roddick. In my opinion he should have been victorious. This is the best I have seen him play since… well his victory at the U.S. Open in 2003. He actually put up a great fight against Federer. Moreover, Roddick played the type of tennis I have always known he could play. This was due in part to his new coach, Larry Stefanki. For the record, Stefanki also coached players such as Tim Henman and John McEnroe. He also trained Marcelo Rios and Yevgeny Kafelnikov. Both became world number one players.
In addition to working on cleaning up his strokes, Roddick’s coach helped him lose some weight (10 to 20 pounds). The weight loss allowed Roddick to get to the ball faster. Out of all of Roddick’s confrontations with Federer in Grand Slam finals (three times in Wimbledon and one time in the U.S Open) this is the closest he has ever come to actually winning. It is also the first time Roddick and Federer had to go to a fifth set.
If you got a chance to view the Royal Box, you would have seen Bjorn Borg, Pete Sampras, and Rod Laver. Some people have started to ask the inevitable question, “who’s the greatest tennis player?” I’m a little too biased concerning Pete Sampras’ career, so I will by pass a direct answer. However, Rod Laver is the only player to win the Grand Slam twice during his career. No other tennis player, man or woman, has reached such a level of success. Borg, who had played in 16 Grand Slam finals from 1974 to 1981 won eleven Grand Slam Titles, before retiring at the young age of 25.
With a new coach, less weight, and a new approach to the game, Roger Federer better watch his back because he now has two players breathing down his neck; Rafael Nadal and Andy Roddick.