Tennis

Federer dominant, still not satisfied

As good as it gets for the world No. 1, he's on a mission to raise the bar even higher.

By KEITH NIEBUHR
Published January 15, 2006

As Roger Federer addressed the media after winning last year's U.S. Open in New York, the game's most dominant player was asked what it felt like to tie idols Boris Becker and Stefan Edberg on the list of all-time majors won with six.

It was special, he told them.

A blessing. A joy. A relief.

A dream come true.

But then he reminded the world of something very important.

"I still got something left I think in my career," Federer said.

Uh-oh.

As remarkable as Federer has been during the past few years, he has never looked back, never gotten caught up in the hype and never been content with just being great. He knows he's the best in the game today but Federer craves more. He wants to be (and many suggest he already is) remembered as the best who ever played.

"I think he can get better and that's the scary thing," said U.S. Davis Cup captain Patrick McEnroe, who will cover this week's Australian Open for ESPN. "In a lot of ways, he's looking at himself as far as history goes and how history is going to look at him. With (Pete) Sampras, you got the feeling he was playing against the ghosts of Rod Laver. You get a little sense of that with Federer."

Federer's 2005 accomplishments were nothing short of astonishing. In addition to winning two majors (Wimbledon and the U.S. Open), he claimed nine other titles and posted an 81-4 record, the best winning percentage in a season (.953) since the volatile John McEnroe went 82-3 (.965) in 1984. The Swiss star finished No. 1 for the second straight year, became only the fifth wire-to-wire No. 1 in ATP Tour history and improved his unbeaten streak in finals to 24 before being toppled in five sets by David Nalbandian at the Tennis Masters Cup in November at Shanghai.

The question on everyone's mind entering 2006 is the same as it was a year ago: Can anyone challenge him?

"On a consistent basis, definitely not," ESPN analyst Cliff Drysdale said. "Sampras spent six years at No. 1 and after his run I thought the days of domination were over. But they're not."

So, is it hopeless for everyone else?

Maybe not.

Because the majority of tournaments are played on three types of surfaces (clay, grass and hardcourt), a specialist on any one of them could give Federer trouble.

Although Federer is solid on each (that's part of his genius), he hasn't won the French Open, which is played on clay, a surface players such as Rafael Nadal, Guillermo Coria and Juan Carlos Ferrero thrive on. On grass, Federer is king, but an Andy Roddick and Ivo Karlovic, armed with the game's best serves, are capable of toppling him. At hardcourt events, Nadal has given him fits and he has been routinely challenged by Nalbandian, who is 6-4 all time against Federer with two wins at majors.

"To me, Nadal is his toughest opponent," Drysdale said. "But not on grass. I don't think he's ever going to have the grass game to compete. Andy can beat him on grass, but he hasn't beaten him in so long. The problem for Roddick there is that he's never going to meet Federer until the semifinals or finals. If you're going to get Federer on grass, it's when the grass is really green early in the tournament. That's because you're not used to it and you haven't gotten your grass court feet yet."

Against players currently ranked in the top five, Federer is 26-16 but has losing records against two (Nadal and Nalbandian). But since the start of 2004, he is 18-3 against the group.

"The biggest question for me is whether Roddick, Hewitt, Marat Safin any of those guys ... is going to step up," Patrick McEnroe said. "Or is it going to come from the younger guys?"

Among an impressive group of under-21 players, Nadal, last year's French Open champion, is the obvious headliner. But Frenchmen Richard Gasquet and Gael Monfils and Tomas Berdych of the Czech Republic all show great potential.

Gasquet "in terms of pure tennis is the most talented young guy," McEnroe said. Berdych has been called by some a "mini-Federer." And Monfils, ranked No. 25, has all the tools to be a top 10 player this year.

"To me, Federer is the best player that ever hit a tennis ball on a tennis court," Drysdale said. "But he can get better. He has this whole thing about raising the bar. They're not just words. Just as the Williams sisters raised it for women's tennis, he has raised it for the men's game. But there will be a response and he knows that."

But when? And by whom?

[Last modified January 15, 2006, 01:48:18]