Roger Federer: Does Fed-Ex or Rafael Nadal Need a Win More at Wimbledon?

Now that the 2012 French Open is in the books, Wimbledon is less than a month away, and Roger Federer is the elite men’s player that needs a win the most. 

Rafael Nadal is coming off a historically dominant performance at Roland Garros. 

The victory earned him his seventh win in Paris, giving him the record for most titles since the tournament became an open. 

Nadal lost just one set throughout his run to the championship, and that came in the finals against Novak Djokovic, the top-ranked player in the world.

The Spaniard was fantastic throughout the tournament, and his performance suggested that his best performance may still be in the future. He is just 26 years old and clearly still capable of elevating his game. 

A disappointing performance at Wimbledon would not be cause for much concern over the trajectory of Nadal’s career; it would like be viewed simply as a disappointing performance.

But for Federer, the stakes are higher. He is now on the wrong side of 30 and has had a run of bad luck in Grand Slams.

His last victory at a major was the 2010 Australian open. In his last nine attempts, he has reached the final only once. The Swiss has five semifinal appearances and three quarterfinal appearances.

For nearly any other player, these results would be impressive. But Federer has a set a higher standard for himself throughout his career. Due to his record of 16 Grand Slam wins, he is generally considered to be the greatest men’s tennis player of all time. 

Now, he is not nearly as dominant and the longer he goes without a win at a major, the more tennis fans will wonder if Federer is capable of grabbing No. 17 before he retires.

If Federer does win another major, it will likely be at Wimbledon. He has six titles on the famed grass courts, more than at any other Slam.

A win at Wimbledon is extremely special regardless of the circumstances, but for Nadal, it would be just another major victory. 

For Federer, a win at Wimbledon would be a statement. It would announce to the world that he is not done competing with Nadal and Djokovic for Grand Slams, and despite his age, he still remains a threat to take down any player in tennis with a title on the line.