What's Going on With Roger Federer?

Only weeks after his heartbreaking defeat against Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer took the court for his first match in Toronto and lost.

Wait, say that again?  Roger lost?!? 

Yep, Roger Federer, the most dominating player in recent tennis history, fell to No. 22 ranked Gilles Simon.

Who?

I suppose the "who" doesn't matter as much as the "why".

This is a sad day in tennis, because its unbeatable, unwavering champion is suddenly looking quite human.  Two Grand Slam losses in a row, added to the surprising loss on Wednesday, and suddenly the warning lights are turning on for Roger Federer. 

I myself stated that Roger Federer would easily rebound from his loss to Nadal in the Wimbledon final, and that his superb play over the course of the next month and a half would make the U.S. Open one of the most interesting tournaments in recent history. 

But I don't think anyone expected this.  Is it that Federer is losing confidence in his game?  I don't think so. His first set domination proved that he is a long way away from losing his form. 

Was it a superior opponent?  I do not think so there either.  Simon is a great up-and-coming player, but he is not the type of competition that would defeat the great Federer on Day One of a tournament. 

Personally, I believe it has been the rising pressure that has been put on Federer's shoulders the last two weeks.  The media has been asking "Is this the end for Roger?" and "Has Roger finally been broken?", and that obviously is having a huge toll on Roger's psyche. 

For four years, he has stood firmly at number one, and no one has come close to knocking him off his throne.  Following his Wimbledon defeat, Federer undoubtedly had to be wondering if he was going to lose the top ranking.  Anyone who says that they don't think about that is not being honest, in my opinion.

Federer has lost before in the Grand Slam tune ups, but for the most part it has been in the quarterfinal, semifinal, or the final, and no one has said anything about it, because all players are human.  No man can win EVERY tournament he plays in, but it was his ability to make it to EVERY semifinal and final that made him a great player for the last four years.

I, like many, expected Federer to come into Toronto and walk through the early rounds, and make it into the final unscathed, because that is what tennis fans expect of him.  It was this expectation, coupled with the immense pressure to prove that Wimbledon wasn't the end of him, that ultimately brought Roger down. 

Why did he seemingly shut down after the first set?  Some will say he went on cruise control, and thought that he could get through the rest of the match that way.  I do not think this was the case. 

I think that once Simon showed signs of life in the second set, Roger tried too hard to prove that he was still the dominating force that took him to the top.  He started over hitting his forehands, and they weren't hitting their marks, which is very atypical of Federer. 

He gave much of the credit to Simon.

"He's a good baseliner. We saw that today. He moves well. He's deceiving because he's kind of thin and tall but moves really well for his height, you know. He flicks a lot of balls with his backhand as well, so when you come in you can't see where he plays." (ESPN.com)

Every sporting athlete will praise their opponent when they find themselves on the losing end of a competition, but in this case, I believe that Roger Federer played beyond his comfort zone, and did not play "Roger Federer tennis". 

This is reality check number two for Federer, and just like Wimbledon, this tournament makes the U.S. Open look VERY interesting for tennis fans.

Not only might we see Rafael Nadal emerge as the number one player in the world during the next couple of weeks, but we might also see a broken Roger Federer struggle to find his way back to form before the Open. 

After Wednesday, I have a new outlook on the tennis world- NOTHING IS IMPOSSIBLE.