Roger Federer Down but Not Out Just Yet

Remember when someone in the Bleacher Report writer section suggested Roger Federer should skip the entire clay court season?

After watching the 16-time Grand Slam champion playing at the Sony Ericsson Open along with Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic, it's hard to imagine the Swiss beating them on clay.

He would need to get rid of his lapses of concentration, which would be even more exposed on the red dirt.

I think he's enjoying his tennis as much as ever, and, as long as he continues to enjoy it and doesn't see his current standard slipping, then he'll keep going.

I, for one, don't think his standard has slipped too much.

However, it is still enough to put Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic in front of him in the rankings.

Of course, the season is just beginning and many things can happen until the end of the US Open. Perhaps  Federer is not quite the player he was three years ago, but he's a better player than he was last year, that's for sure.

That said, three months into the season, I'm not so sure that Federer's advance is quite as strong as I thought it was. That the top standard he's starting to find might not cut it against Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal.

One thing's for certain—he desperately needs to win in Miami.

Even if the European clay court season has not started yet, Rafa is already showing great results, despite his hamstring injury caught in Australia.

Like Federer, Nadal is also playing better in Indian Wells and Miami this year than he did last year.

Whatever happens in 2011, I think that the 2012 Olympic Games (to be held at Wimbledon) will be absolutely huge for Federer and could be a watershed moment for him.

Maybe there's one more Grand Slam in him, possibly two, but definitely not on clay anymore.

At the moment, the pecking order is Nadal on clay and Djokovic on hard courts, leaving Wimbledon and the Olympics as Federer's best chance of claiming one more big win.

The Olympics is the one accolade missing from the great man's trophy cabinet, and if he wins Olympic gold, I really think that might be it for him.

The only other thing that would keep Roger playing is he seems a man for history. He won't be too happy leaving while Nadal relentlessly continues to pick up Grand Slams.

Who knows what's going to happen in the future; in 10 years' time we might have another Federer.

However, is anyone really likely to win as many Slams as that in the next 10 years? It's very unlikely.

The only man who could do it is Nadal, so if he can keep nagging away at the Spaniard —rather than the other way around—then that might just keep him in the game a little longer.

Ultimately, the current World No. 2 could give Federer's record a helping hand by challenging Nadal consistently at the top of the game, especially on the hard courts.

If the Serb can keep playing at the level he's shown us recently, he can really challenge Rafa's domination at the top of the men's game.

I still see Nadal winning the French Open this year, and either he or Federer will probably win Wimbledon, but I'd pick this year's Australian Open and Indian Wells champion for US Open glory, hands down.

At the moment, provided Nadal and Djokovic stay fit, I certainly can't see Federer getting back up to world No. 1.