Roger Federer's Greatness Shines Through in Brilliant 2011 Finish

He just doesn't stop. Roger Federer, the 30-year-old, the 16-time grand slam champion, the man who had reached the top, fallen from it, then regained it, only to be ousted again, is still at it, at a time in his career most draw parallels with the latter epochs of many other greats.

Its almost unbelievable in this era. Federer has now won the year-ending championships for a record sixth time, having reached the finals seven times overall and the knockout stages eight times in the last 10 years he has qualified. In doing so, he completed what he himself described as "the strongest finish to a season he" ever had, allowing him to remain in the top three for the ninth straight year. It is a mouthful indeed.

It is gold dusted stuff, however. Roger Federer continues to amaze with his almost impeccable, unflappable consistency, returning daily to the ATP tour to wipe away the disappointment of yesterday. He has had a ton of them, for sure, in the last three years, but it is a mark of his character as a player that he has had a ton of wins to make up for them.

How pundits or armchair speculators will ever satisfactorily and consensually define greatness remains a mystery, but certainly, consistency and reliability must play a great role.

Many greats have had spectacular single seasons; McEnroe's 1984, Wilander's 1988 or Sampras' 1996 seasons come to mind, while most recently, Djokovic added his name to the list with his 70-6 win-loss mark of 2011.

But how many guys out there have won a record number of grand slams or had decade defining seasons, year in, year out? Few.

Few would be synonymous, and nearly homonymous, in the minds of many, with Federer. It is difficult now to name anyone else who has reached the final of every Masters Series tournament there ever was, who has won multiple titles for over 10 years, who has won six year-end championships (no one). One might even say that his feat in 2011 of remaining in the top three for nine consecutive years tops, or at least equals, Sampras' feat of six consecutive years at No. 1. 

More than colouring in the record books with shades and hues we have never known, however, Federer's greatness—incredible, almost everlasting competitive stamina—revealed itself yet again this year. Simply, he picked up at the end of 2011, where he had been left out by everywhere else in the year.

In compiling a 17-0 mark since the US Open and winning three tournaments in a row, he also did what he had done in years past: defeat routine opponents and re-establish the dominance of his game. He extended his head to head against Wawrinka at Basel in the semifinals, avenged himself on Berdych in spectacular fashion in Paris and beat Jo-Wilfried Tsonga for a second, third and fourth straight time in consecutive weeks.

To top it off, he exacted one of his greatest thrashings on his longtime rival and arch-nemesis, Rafael Nadal, at his newest favourite venue (the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals), and a city which has witnessed so many of their battles (London).

Which all seems rather over much for a 30-year-old, who ought, by the laws of nature, to be in some state of decline. Maybe Federer is, and if we look at his results over the last three years, one could say that he has. 2011 was his first slam-less year in nine years, and also the first year in seven he has dropped out of the top three.

If this is decline, however, he has found an awfully good way of hiding it. What his late 2011 surge revealed nevertheless was the incredible durability of his game. We talk often of the variety of Federer, of the potential longevity of it. But it is all possible, in some way, because for one, it is the sort of game that can trouble nearly all players, and that two, because of the weight of his success, this seems to magnify his threat every time he plays.

So it happened against Tsonga in the World Tour final. Federer was, in fact, for the large part outplayed in the first set, winning many fewer points and fighting constantly to hold serve.

Tsonga, however, a player formed in this era of power-hitting, clearly possessed more potent groundies and a thumping first serve. It all seemed to be coming to fruition for the Frenchman in the second, when, with a crushing return, he sealed the set in a tiebreak and looked to regain the match in the third.

Some call it luck, and Federer himself has called it that himself on several occasions. Tennis isn't all power; it's often placement and deft tactical adjustments, adaptation to single moments and the realisation that anything, in fact, can happen.

Federer wasn't fazed by the loss of the second set and the squandering of one championship point. He regained his composure and kept up the pressure. It was difficult for Tsonga—besides drawing Federer out wide with risky pounding forehands or ridiculous volleys—to gain any noticeable edge over the Swiss.

In short, the last match of this ATP year, of Federer's brilliant autumnal resurgence, reconfirms the suspicions we have been having for quite some time. Roger Federer hasn't gone away and doesn't look to be going away anytime soon. He is troubling the best of the players of today and troubled himself by few. It is remarkable for a man of his long tennis years.

It keeps us honest, as we realise day by day just how great his career might become.