Roger Federer: Remaining Under the Radar Will Do Wonders for Fed in French Open

With the French Open on the horizon, tennis' top players are trying to round their respective games into form. One particular star who has done a good job of that is Roger Federer. Perhaps more importantly, though, Fed hasn't been receiving as much attention as his counterparts, and that will play right into his hands.

Federer has looked extremely impressive on the blue clay in the Madrid Open and we haven't really heard a peep out of him. Federer is currently the third-ranked player in the world as he trails both Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal. Djokovic and Nadal have been quite vocal about their disdain for the blue clay and some might even say that they have been whining.

Nadal was dispatched by Fernando Verdasco and while Djokovic has managed to win, that hasn't stopped him from complaining. Federer has simply gone about his business and dispatched of his opponents in impressive fashion. A lot of the talk lately has been about Federer's inability to win Grand Slams, but now that focus has shifted to Djokovic and Nadal.

For almost a decade Federer has entered every Grand Slam and pretty much been expected to win. Thanks to Djokovic's recent dominance and Nadal's incredible prowess on clay, however, that is no longer the case. While I don't necessarily want to call Federer an afterthought since he is still almost guaranteed to make it to the semi-finals, there simply isn't as much pressure on him anymore.

Federer has been the face of tennis since 2003, but because he hasn't won a Grand Slam since the Australian Open in 2010, many fans have moved forward and now consider Djokovic to be the guy. Because of how well Djokovic has played it's tough to argue with that, but Federer can still beat anyone on any given day.

Not only has he been fairly anonymous as of late, but he's played extremely well to boot. When Federer plays mistake-free tennis he is still capable of being the best in the world. There have been too many instances in Grand Slam tournaments over the past couple years where Federer has lost his way and hit too many unforced errors, but he has rectified that for the time being.

Federer dominated the tennis scene for a long time, but now he's in a tough position because he has to deal with two guys who may also be considered all-time greats when it's all said and done. Even No. 4 Andy Murray is an extremely difficult player to beat despite the fact that he has yet to break through at a Grand Slam event.

It isn't often that Federer is outside the spotlight, but since he is for the time being, he needs to take advantage of that. He is now an underdog of sorts when compared to Djokovic and Nadal and while that may not be a position to which he is accustomed, it should allow him to play freely and easily.

There is no doubt that winning the French Open will be a difficult task for Federer, but with pressure mounting for guys like Djokovic and Nadal, don't be surprised if Fed is able to come up with a huge effort on the big stage yet again.