Why Roger Federer Must Close out 2015 with Championship-Level Tennis
Roger Federer’s failure to defend his Shanghai Masters title will be important in looking to a stronger finish in 2015. Never mind that he lost nearly 1,000 ranking points, which means falling further behind Andy Murray for the chance to be the year-end No. 2 player in the world.
There are huge opportunities just ahead, and it will be imperative that Federer builds on the excellence he displayed in competing for the Wimbledon and U.S. Open titles.
On the surface, it might seem less important that Federer play as well in October and November. After all, he is a legendary champion whose most important objective is to get that elusive 18th major title.
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So why is now the future?
Pushing a Boulder
There’s a Greek myth that could serve as a gruelling analogy to how difficult it can be to perform week after week on the ATP tour. A king named Sisyphus is given a brutal punishment by the gods for various reasons. His task is to roll a large boulder to the top of a steep hill, watch the boulder fall back to the bottom of the hill and then repeat this monotonous task through all eternity.
Tennis, fortunately, has greater variety and creativity, but no matter how great Federer and other champions perform, there’s always another week filled with all manner of training repetitions and duels against other hungry competitors. It can be laborious, painful and disheartening, and at times it may also seem meaningless if there are no laurel wreaths or golden trophies.
Sisyphus was no doubt strengthened beyond his normal stature even if he was languishing through a task that had little or no value. Federer, who is trying to enhance all of the positive changes to the details in his game, understands that the work he puts in now could be the edge he needs when he must push harder than ever before. In March 2014 he told the Daily Mail that he worked harder than his fellow superstars during the 2013 offseason:
"December was crucial. I don’t want to say this in a cocky way but I believe I worked the hardest from the top eight in the off-season. Many guys went off to play exhibitions, or were in the Davis Cup. I had time, I put my head down and worked and I did it without any setbacks."
It’s a similar vibe to the comments we hear from his other historical rivals. Rafael Nadal is seeking momentum to contend for majors once again. He lost the Beijing final to Novak Djokovic but remarked, per BBC Sport, "I have been improving in every single match. All matches are good practice for me. It's good energy for starting next season stronger.”
World No. 1 Novak Djokovic has almost double the rankings points of Federer in 2015, but he has reaffirmed his drive to stay on top for a long time, according to his comments found in the Mirror:
"We (Djokovic’s team) always want to work harder than the other guys so that is something that is always in the back of your mind and gives you a lot of motivation. There is always something I can work on.
As a 28-year-old, I feel like I have many years in front of me. Right now I feel like I’m at the peak of my abilities and career and I want to use that for as long as I can.
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Indeed that is so much of what makes up the Big Three of tennis, and there will be no let up from Federer. Winning fuels his confidence, and great play now, like winning the WTF title in November, could get him fine-tuned when Melbourne rolls around in January.
Aiming for Djokovic
Winning now is more important than the spark he will need to keep working hard into December as he balances family life and plants another stiff arm into Father Time. Federer would like to keep his lead spot in the bottom of the bracket and face a few easier early-round opponents.
Win now and Federer flexes his muscular competitiveness, mental belief and championship aura. He needs the energy to finish hungry and pesky players like No. 70-ranked Spaniard journeyman Albert Ramos-Vinolas who must have enjoyed the moment of a tennis lifetime in defeating the mighty Federer in that Shanghai match.
The work now is important even if Djokovic is seemingly impossible to defeat for the moment. Momentum is fickle to even the greatest champions, and any slippage in the Serbian, be it an injury or an upset is an opportunity for Federer to be the favorite. He does not want Murray, Nadal or someone else filling that chair.
So on to Basel, Paris and London. They are not the titles that he craves the most, but they might be the important pieces on the way to major No. 18.
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