possibly more impressive is the fact that Federer has reached 15 of the last 16 Grand Slam finals and 20 straight Grand Slam semis (Sampras reached a total of 18 finals).  Federer overcame not only the ups and downs of the past year and a half, but also a string of inspired and challenging opponents during the past two weeks.  Roger also handled the added pressure and expectations heaped on his shoulders since Rafael Nadal lost during the first week of the tournament.  In addition, Federer overcame the emotions of a terribly scary moment when an intruder ran onto the court and approached Federer early in the second set of the Final.  Yes, Federer served very well and his forehand, which has been erratic at key moments during the past year, came through for him in the Final.  However, Federer managed to defeat all of these "opponents" and his doubters for the same reason he's won so many Grand Slam titles, his remarkable tennis talent and mental fortitude.  Given his strong record on clay and at the French Open, where Federer has reached one semi and four straight finals, one could easily say that Federer deserved to hoist the Coupe Des Mousqetaires during his career... but it wasn't a certainty until today.  It seemed fitting that Andre Agassi, who won the French Open title ten years ago and is the only other male tennis player to have won the four majors on three different surfaces, i.e. grass, clay and hard court, presented Federer with the trophy after the match.  Bravo Roger!  Tres bien fait!

Posted by TC at 07:42 PM || Comments (0)