Roger Federer played tennis so excellent, so beautiful, that it gave the sensation that he was floating on the court. And his rivalry with Rafael Nadal increased the Swiss’s feeling of perfection: while the Spaniard ran from side to side, without stopping sweating, Federer finished the matches almost without his hair band moving. CAs if he didn’t need to make an effort to play the most elegant tennis that many have seen.
Everything said in the first paragraph is true. As it is also that eThis vision bothered Federer himself a lot. The 20-time Grand Slam champion, who retired at the end of 2022, indicated in an interview with GQ magazine that he did not like at all the general feeling that existed around his figure and his tennis. Of course he tried, of course he ran.
“Today I take it as a great compliment. But When I was playing I fought against that because I feel like they didn’t see the fighter and the winner that I think I was.. Because if you’re not a fighter, if you don’t make an effort… you can’t achieve what I achieved without making an effort. I think that Only when you’ve worked incredibly hard can you make everything look easy.“says the former number one in the interview.
“I always struggled, especially in the beginning, with that thought of ‘Well, Don’t you see the passion, the fight and everything I left behind? Because when I win it’s like, ‘Oh, it’s so easy.’ And when I lose it’s like ‘I wish I’d tried a little harder.’‘. That at first was very, very difficult to accept and very complex for me,” adds Federer. “It was a little complicated then, but finally I felt very comfortable with myself and I knew that I was giving it my all. And that’s why, when he lost a game, five minutes later there was no problem. ‘I gave everything I had and I have to keep going.'”
The “monster” and the Wimbledon final with Nadal
At the interview, The Swiss also refers to those years in which he felt practically invincible. From Wimbledon 2004 to the Australian Open 2010, the Swiss played 23 consecutive Grand Slam semifinals, winning 14 majors and losing six other finals. Nadal was practically the only one who overshadowed him.
“I wasn’t really aware of it until 2008. There was a moment in 2005, When I lost to Marat Safin at the Australian Open I said ‘I’ve created a monster.’ Because when he lost a set, people were like ‘Oh my God, Roger lost a set.’ Or when he lost in the semi-finals with a match point against Safin and people were shocked and said ‘Can you believe it?’ “It’s normal to lose against an incredible player,” recalls what for many is the best tennis player in history regardless of the numbers.
“I think in 2008, when I lost to Rafa (in the Wimbledon final) it was a very particular moment because I was obviously devastated. after losing that match. But a month later I came to the United States and people were still talking about it, They told me ‘We’ve seen you win so much that seeing you on the losing side was really different and special.’ (…) And then it continued for days and days until I realized that we had created something special at that very moment.”
Rafael Nadal
Roger Federer
2024-03-15 17:26:05
#Dont #passion #struggle #Relief
