Roger Federer vs. Tomas Berdych: Federer Win Irrelevant Heading into French Open

Roger Federer just added another tennis win to his illustrious professional resume, as he won 3-6, 7-5, 7-5 over No. 6 seed Tomas Berdych.

An obvious Hall of Famer, Federer's win, though impressive, doesn't matter much in regards to his overall success at the French Open.

Here, let's take a look at why Federer winning in Madrid proves nothing heading into the second major tournament of the year.

Pre-Rafael Nadal

Before we get to his archrival Rafael Nadal, the French Open has never been nice to Roger Federer.

In his first six French Open tournaments from 1999 through 2004, Federer only reached the quarterfinals once (furthest round during this span), and he bowed out in Round 1 three times.

By comparison, the man endured much more from the other three major tournaments.

After getting knocked in Round 1 during the 2002 and 2003 French Opens, Federer managed to get to Round 4 in the Australian and US Opens during those years, and he won Wimbledon in 2003. Before the Nadal rivalry began, 2004 was a huge success, as Federer won three of the four major tournaments.

As one might guess, the French Open was the one major he failed to win. He was upset in Round 3 by Gustavo Kuerten of Brazil.

Now, we head into 2005 and beyond with Mr. Nadal.

Rafael Nadal

Roger Federer had finally made it to the French Open semifinals and was the No. 1 seed in 2005, where he faced Rafael Nadal.

Nadal won three sets to one and eventually won the tournament. This was the first of four consecutive French Open wins for Nadal, who he has six all together.

From 2006-2008, Federer met Nadal in the French Finals and lost each time. He finally managed to win in 2009 after Rafael was upset by Robin Soderling in Round 4.

Once 2010 happened, however, the tennis world seemingly went back to normal—at least when it came to Federer, Nadal and the French Open. Ironically, Federer was upset by Soderling (who upset Nadal a year earlier), but Nadal avenged himself and brought home the title for a fifth time.

As for 2011, Federer met Nadal once again in the French Open finals and fell for a fifth time in five tries (four in the finals) to his rival.

This year, Federer fell to Nadal at the Australian Open, and we're seeing Nadal significantly improve on other surfaces than clay. So, don't expect anything different from the 2012 French Open other than Nadal over Federer if they meet again.

Age

Roger Federer has nothing else to prove in regards to his tennis career. He's arguably the greatest tennis player of all time, but time is of the essence for Federer right now. He'll be turning 31 years old later this summer, and Rafael Nadal will only be 26 this year. Meanwhile, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray will both be just 25 years old before the month of May is over.

If you look at other tennis greats, Federer is nearing that end line in regards to his age. Pete Sampras retired when he was 30, Andre Agassi lasted until age 36 (rare) and John McEnroe retired when he was 33.

Federer's win in Madrid proved he can still bring it considering his age and ability to remain healthy, but it's still early in the year, and three majors remain.

His performance at the 2012 French Open will determine a lot as to how the rest of the season pans out, especially since he hasn't won a major since 2010 (Australian Open), and he bowed out earlier this year.

John Rozum on Twitter.