Roger Federer: Why US Open Won't Be FedEx's Last Shot at Slam

There is little doubt in anyone’s mind that Swiss tennis star Roger Federer is the greatest men’s tennis player of our generation, but the recent talk that his time as a Grand Slam winner is almost over is preposterous.

Critics won't say that anymore when he wins the 2012 U.S. Open.

While it had been over two years since winning a Grand Slam, Federer’s win in this year's Wimbledon tournament means he can still pull the trigger when the opportunity arises.

Now that he is trying his hand at the U.S. Open without the competition from longtime-foe Rafael Nadal, who pulled out due to injuries, the once written-off star is now the tournament favorite.

While Federer admitted to Reuters there were times in 2011 where he didn’t think he could always win, the confidence has returned and the results on the court are the verification.

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I felt good last year, but probably felt that maybe at times the matches were not always in my racquet, whereas maybe this time around I feel like if I'm playing well I can dictate who's going to win or lose. It's going to take something special from my opponent to win. That's kind of how it feels right now.

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Federer wasn’t the only one that questioned his abilities in 2011.

With intense media scrutiny about whether or not the tour veteran should retire, everyone had an opinion on the future of the tennis great.

ESPN analyst Chris Evert told the Miami Herald about the thought that Federer was done with winning titles and about how he has reclaimed his honor as a top star:

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I think a lot of people did write Roger off because the incredible year that Djokovic had last year was phenomenal, and Nadal was looking sharp and he was looking like he was going to play seven to 10 more years. Those two players looked a lot stronger. And Roger almost looked a little bit frail in comparison, because, you know, just the training that they had done and how fit they were. But Roger surprised us all. I don’t know, he’s gotten his second wind in his career. … Certainly the last few months, he played the most beautiful tennis that we have seen in a long time. And the fact that at the end of the year, he’s still playing so well, is remarkable, because this year has been, as we all know, such a long year.

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While there is much uncertainty around the knees of Nadal and the consistency of Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray, there is no reason to believe that Federer won’t be in the position to win another Grand Slam in 2013.

Nadal has been and will always remain a thorn in Federer’s side, but there is no doubt that the Swiss ace still has what it takes to beat the best in the world on any given day.

Federer may not be the greatest player right now because of his age, but he can still win huge tournaments using his experience and his remaining skill.

Even at 80 percent of what Federer was when he was younger, he would still crush almost anyone in the world.

Check back for more on tennis as it comes, and don’t miss Bleacher Report’s Tennis page to get your fill of all things racquets.

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