Federer, Djokovic sizzle in fierce yet fun-filled clash
NEW DELHI: When Roger Federer withdrew from the ATP Tour finals in London, he left fans disappointed. After all, how often can you have the world No 1 take on the world No 2 in the yearender? Federer might hold a slim head-to-head advantage over Novak Djokovic (19-17) but the Serb beat the Swiss Master this year to deny him the elusive 18th Grand Slam at Wimbledon.
London may have been disappointed, but not Delhi.
The city was treated to what some fans hadn’t dreamt of watching live — Federer taking on Djokovic at the Indira Gandhi
Stadium.
On Monday evening, the decibel levels went north as the top two faced off in what was the last match of the exhibition. There was grace and poise, poetry and power. It was fierce and fun.
“Today tennis is more physical. You need a weapon to succeed. A good forehand would be a weapon. Look at Novak, Roger or Rafa (Nadal). If you don’t have a weapon you will struggle from the backcourt,” feels 14-time Grand Slam superstar Pete Sampras.
The American, who beat Rod Laver’s all-time record of 12 Grand Slams before Federer demolished his, is happy that his ‘friend’ beat his 14. But as the FedererDjokovic show proved, tennis today has become ‘one-dimensional’. Thanks to Stefan Edberg’s style and coaching, Federer has recently started coming up to the net more often. “My generation had serve and volley but it also had contrast. I was playing Boris Becker one day and Andre (Agassi) the next day. Now everyone plays the same and from the back and they are great at it,” added Sampras. Federer and Djokovic have been part of epic battles and Monday’s tie gave a glimpse of why fans follow these two players.
One thing Sampras is sure about. He sees no one replacing the top three men’s players anytime soon. “I still see them dominating. I see other guys threatening them, but when it comes to shove, you’ll find those three guys in the second weeks of Majors.”
Djokovic finally prevailed in the tie (6-6 the scoreline read) but it was Federer who left fans yearning for more.
Results: Manila Mavericks 23 Singapore Slammers 17; Indian Aces 22 UAE Royals 29