Roger Federer Will Return to Form at ATP World Tour Finals Despite Struggles

While this year may be the worst fans have seen from Roger Federer in as long as a decade, expect the 32-year-old Swiss star to bounce back in a big way when it matters most in 2013—at the Barclays ATP World Tour.

Federer has had a horrific season to say the least and has won just a single tournament this year—which was minor at best from the grass court at Halle. He's appeared in just three finals overall on the season while fighting nagging back injuries.

This season marks the first since 2002 that Federer has not reached the final of a Grand Slam. For a legend who has won 17 Grand Slams, 2013 has been anything but normal.

Perhaps the worst feat of all this season for Switzerland's very own? Federer has lost eight times against top-10 opposition—in 10 attempts.

Federer finally earned his spot in the season-ending tournament recently as the sixth of eight qualifiers. Now he's stuck in a precarious situation in Group A with elite opposition in Novak Djokovic, Juan Martin del Potro and Richard Gasquet.

Even worse, Federer has just two days of rest after playing nine matches in 12 days, five of which went to three sets.

Despite the seemingly overwhelming odds, Federer has surely saved his best for last.

Slump or not, Federer has found recent success and seemingly has the mental aspect of the game down heading into the final tournament of the year, as he told reporters via Courtney Nguyen of Sports Illustrated:

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It’s been a lot of tennis, no doubt about it. I was hoping for that problem to occur. So I’m happy it’s gone this way, to play a lot of matches and won a lot now these past couple of weeks. But these two days now are crucial. … I’m happy with my game. My confidence is back again and that can carry you a really long way. So that’s good.

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Despite his age, Federer is content with the tennis overload in recent weeks and believes it gives him an advantage heading into the World Tour. He's also right to believe he's nowhere near the end of his career, as he told BBC via Simon Briggs of The Telegraph:

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I disagree with it because last year I was world No 1 at some point, and I was 31. So at 32 you can’t play tennis any more? I just don’t believe in that quick a turnaround.

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Federer's first opponent, once again Djokovic, who beat Federer in the final last year and in the semifinals last week at the Paris Masters, knows Federer is perhaps the most dangerous man of all per ESPN's Ismail Vedat:

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In my opinion, he hasn't been moving as well this year as he did before, and I guess that's one of the reasons why he hasn't had much success this year. … He's Roger Federer and he's achieved so much in his career. He's never to be underestimated as long as he plays tennis. He has an incredible quality in his game even though he is moving slower than he used to. He's striking the ball really well and if he feels well that day he can beat anybody.

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Federer took an ill-advised route earlier in the year when he attempted to play through injury, which has been the primary reason for his mediocre season. Is he not moving as fast, as Djokovic suggests? Surely. Is it primarily because of age? Absolutely not.

In no way has Federer suddenly hit some form of career wall. Rather, Federer simply was in the midst of a slight regression via various factors such as injuries, but he's shown with his sound play and health in his recent rigorous schedule that he's still able to compete at a high level.

Federer has made the semifinals or better of the World Tour in 10 of his past 11 attempts. Not only is he dominant in the season-ending tournament, he's only just beginning to fire on all cylinders.

Feel free to scoff at Federer's struggles this season, but he'll be back to normal when it matters most.

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