Roger Federer's Window to Win Grand Slams Now Completely Shut

With Roger Federer's semifinal loss to Rafael Nadal, it's now clearer than ever that the man with more Grand Slams than anyone will not be padding his lead.

If there was ever a perfect time for him to win No. 17, it was at the Australian Open. He came in playing well and making everything look easy, even by Federer's standards. Things seemed perfect for Federer to beat Rafael Nadal, who was clearly banged up and struggled to beat Tomas Berdych.

After dropping the first set, Nadal downed Federer in each of the next three.

Fedex had looked nearly unbeatable before the semifinals. He had dropped only one set all tournament and even had the benefit of a walkover victory.

Despite being the healthier and better-rested player, Federer was still a step slower than Nadal all match.

That isn't a history lesson. No, the purpose there is to make it abundantly clear that Federer's road to the finals was paved perfectly for him. Still, he couldn't manage anything better than a four-set loss.

Expecting anything more from Federer in Grand Slams from this point on would be foolish.

He is 30 years old. Nadal is 25, and Novak Djokovic is 24. Both players are already ranked ahead of Federer and have beaten him in the last two Grand Slam semifinals.

Logically, you generally catch up to players older than you as they age. But when you're older and your closest rivals are not only younger than you but already better players, it's not a good sign.

That doesn't even factor in Andy Murray, He is 24 and a spot below Federer in the rankings.

But after seeing him take Djokovic to five sets in their semifinal match, there is plenty of reason to believe he is now mentally on the right track to break through and win a major. The physical tools have always been there.

Djokovic, Nadal and Murray are all significantly younger than Federer, and two of them are higher in the rankings.

Federer came into this slam with a perfect road to the finals and still couldn't get there. The results certainly aren't going to be better in future slams when the road isn't so friendly.

If he couldn't beat Nadal on the hard courts of Australia, he won't win on clay or grass, where Rafa is a much better player. 

Make no mistake about it, Federer will appear to be a contender for a little while longer. The men's game is still razor-thin outside of Djokovic, Nadal and Murray, so we'll see many more deep runs at No. 17.

But a deep run does not mean winning, and that distinction will be what gets in Federer's way. 

When it comes time to face these players, Federer will go down. One of them will always be there to stand in his way. As a result, the number of Grand Slam titles will stay at 16. 

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