Roger Federer: Mixed Results in Rome Reason for Concern Ahead of French Open

Roger Federer is a master of all things tennis, clay courts included.

When Rafael Nadal isn't involved, anyway.

Federer furthered his reputation as a fantastic player on clay with a win at the Madrid Open and appeared to be well on his way to doing the same at the Italian Open in Rome.

That is until his second set against Juan Carlos Ferrero, in which the Swiss maestro appeared tired and unfocused, resulting in a string of unforced errors that were hardly becoming of Federer.

Of course, those issues are easy to overlook. After all, Federer went on to beat Ferrero in three sets, 6-2 5-7 6-1, and dispatched Carlos Berlocq in the previous round, 6-3 6-4. Couple that with triumph on the "smurf" clay that gave Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic so much trouble last week, and Federer looks as likely as any to leave the Eternal City with a victory and a bit of positive momentum to carry north to Roland Garros.

Federer figures to be fine. The real issue is the same as its always been—Nadal's dominance on conventional clay. The Spaniard struggled on the slippery smurf-colored surface in Madrid but has looked much more like his usual self on the orange stuff in Rome. Three out of the four sets in which Nadal has played so far have gone to him by tallies of 6-1.

As for Federer, his victory at the Madrid Open might easily be devalued by the fact that he faced neither Nadal nor Djokovic along the way.

Thus, as always, Federer's true efficacy on clay can't and won't be judged with any accuracy if/until he's pitted against one (or both) of the other two legs of tennis' ruling triumvirate.

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