Madrid Open 2012 Results: Roger Federer's Slow Start Reason for Worry

Roger Federer didn’t lose on Wednesday, but he wasn’t exactly oozing with confidence afterwards.

He rallied to beat Milos Raonic 4-6, 7-5, 7-6 (4) at the Madrid Open to barely escape his earliest exit at a tournament in two years.

Not since the 2010 Rome Masters has Federer failed to reach the Round of 16, and the streak will continue at Madrid.

He may have won, but it was a much bigger struggle than it should have been.

Not to take away anything from Raonic, but the No. 23 ranked Canadian has no business pushing the 16-time Grand Slam champion to the brink like that—especially with the meat of the Grand Slam season on the horizon.

Early in the match he was overpowering Federer in volleys, winning 12 straight points to secure the first set. What ended up bailing Federer out for the remainder of the match was his serve. It saved him in four break points in the second set as it seemed the speed was too much for Raonic to handle.

In the deciding set, Federer looked to be in complete control with a 4-1 lead, but mental errors began to plague the 30-year-old badly. Numerous unforced erratic shots kept Raonic alive until a few wild shots of his own gave Federer the win on a platter.

The No. 3 ranked player in the world is still looking for his first major since the beginning of 2010 at the Australian Open and I’m beginning to wonder if that will change anytime soon.

He simply doesn’t have the same foot speed of years ago and it forces him to over hit shots at times to make up for it. Federer’s serve is his biggest ally at this point, and that’s just fine against players outside of the top-20.

Once he begins to face off against the top-tier talent of the sport, the only advantage he’ll have is a mental one. Nobody has the experience of Federer.

Yet that will only take him so far. You can’t gain back lost quickness and speed. Blame Father Time.

If Wednesday’s match was a preview of coming attractions, I’m afraid this is going to be a disastrous year for quite possibly the greatest player tennis has ever seen.

Thursday’s third-round match against No. 14 seeded Richard Gasquet is going to be a gigantic indicator to gauge just how successful Federer’s 2012 will be.

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