Federer given a hero’s welcome in return to play in Paris
PARIS — The French Open’s program heralded his return, although Sunday’s ticket holders at Roland Garros were aware of their fortuitous timing. “Roger Federer Retour sur Terre,” it read, proclaiming with multilayered meaning the Swiss champion’s “return to Earth.”
Sunday marked Federer’s first match at the French Open in four years, after being sidelined by injury in 2016 and then skipping the event in 2017 and 2018 to focus on his grasscourt preparation.
On another level, the “terre” to which Federer returned is the tournament’s iconic red clay, essentially crushed brick, which is known in France as “terre battue.” Moreover, since the moment Federer made his Grand Slam debut at the French Open 20 years ago, when he was a 17-year-old phenom with shoulderlength hair, there has been something otherworldly about his game, marked by a grace bordering on weightlessness.
So, when Federer strode on to Philippe Chatrier Court on Sunday afternoon, he was greeted with a standing ovation, cheers and chants of “Roger! Roger!” by a capacity crowd that hailed him as equal parts long-lost love and conquering hero.
Federer entered the 2019 French Open not as a swan song to a brilliant career. At 37, he has given no indication his retirement is at hand. Nor was there anything calculated about it, Federer explained after breezing past Italy’s Lorenzo Sonego 6-2, 6-4, 6-4 and into the second round, summing up his decision to gird for the clay-court season as being “in the mood” and realizing, 10 weeks shy of his 38th birthday, “I’m not getting any younger.”
Federer enters this French Open as the No. 3 seed and every bit a contender, although 11-time champion Rafael Nadal looms in his half of the draw, and top seed Novak Djokovic will likely await in the final.
But in a rare twist, Federer, who boasts a men’s record 20 Grand Slam titles, launches into the season’s second major without the weight of expectation. He has played five clay-court matches in the last three years, all of them last month, reaching the quarterfinals in Madrid and Rome, where he bowed out, largely as a precaution, with a leg injury. And he has won the French Open once, in 2009, the year Nadal was ousted in the fourth round by Robin Soderling.
Speaking to reporters after Sunday’s first-round victory, Federer said he was enjoying competing without great expectations, given his extended layoff from clay tennis.
“This is not a show I’m playing,” Federer said. “This is the truth: I don’t know how far I can go in the event.”
Against Sonego, Federer accomplished the first goal he set for himself: To avoid an arduous, early-round test. He needed 101 minutes to dispatch Sonego, a wiry, bouncy 24-year old who served bigger, hit harder and emoted more theatrically than the composed Swiss.
For all the impressive components of Sonego’s game, particularly on clay, it takes something far more to defeat champions such as Federer and Nadal. Explained Stefanos Tsitsipas, 20, who has beaten Federer and Nadal on clay this season, it requires concentration, tenacity and smarts — on top of skill.
“I know that with (Federer and Nadal), I have to be twice more focused and not give points away,” said Tsitsipas, also a straight-sets victor Sunday. “They control the court so well.”
Federer’s statistics Sunday attested to the insight. He broke Sonego’s serve five times and hit 36 winners to 13 unforced errors. Then, there were the elements of Federer’s game that aren’t reflected by statistics — the devilish array of strokes and impeccable footwork.
In the first set, Federer delivered the deft one-two punch of a wicked drop shot on a service return, followed by a blistering crosscourt winner. In the second set, he flicked another drop shot from behind the baseline that was slathered in so much spin, it plopped just on the other side of net and took a near 90-degree turn left out of court.
Throughout rallies in between, Federer drove forehands deep and peppered the court with every variety of one-handed backhands — slices, topspin loopers and flat blasts. It was a calculated attempt to disrupt his opponent’s rhythm, Federer explained afterward, while keeping himself entertained.
“It’s very pleasant for me to do a drop shot or a passing shot,” Federer said.