On Jan. 29, 2017, Roger Federer won his eighteenth Grand Slam tournament in Melbourne, Australia. Fans were shocked, considering that he is 35 years old. He became the oldest tennis player to win the title in 45 years since Ken Rosewall in 1972. Rosewall was 37 years old when he won the title.
Federer had been struggling a bit, considering that since Wimbledon, he has not been able to beat his opponent Rafael Nadal in 10 years. He also has not won a major match since Wimbledon in 2012. Not to mention that during the 2016 season, Federer was dealing with knee problems; therefore he took a six-month break from competing. He also dealt with a wrist injury.
Viewers of the game explained how Federer was more alert and faster when compared to previous years. During the game he was playing aggressively. His moves were what helped him win. One such move was using his backhand for most of the match. His legs were sore, but he continued to play!
Federer defeated Nadal in a five-set match. The results of each match are: 6-4, 3-6, 6-1, 3-6, 6-3. The game lasted three hours and 38 minutes. Federer’s victory over Nadal increased his likelihood of being the overall career leader in men’s Grand Slam singles titles. Nadal is tied with Pete Sampras, with both players boasting 14 titles, while Federer has 18.
Federer and Nadal are known for their rivalry. Their recent match was the ninth time they met in a Grand Slam. Federer had eight loses against Nadal in other Grand Slams prior to the most recent one. After Federer won this year, he stated in an interview, “But of course it was always going to be super-special beating Nadal in the finals.”
The Switzerland native is hard to stop! He ranks in first place currently for hard court titles, with a total of 61. He ranks in first place for Grand Slam titles, with 10 in total. Federer has a winning percentage of .821, which brings his rank to second place. He trails behind Novak Djokovic, who has a winning percentage of .841. Federer is also married, and has four children.
After hitting his prime at age of 30, Federer won many Grand Slams. He made history with his number of wins; the only other men to win like that were Jimmy Connors, Andre Agassi and Rod Laver.
Melbourne is well-known by Federer, as he has played there many times, and has felt heartbreak and had success there while he played. Federer explains that his win came as a big surprise to him.
For this upcoming season, he is booked with plans. He hopes to come back to Melbourne in 2018. At his age, he claims that,” I have only so much tennis left in me.” He has his eyes on the “All England Club” tournament to gain his nineteenth huge win.
Federer has no intentions of retiring any time soon, since he took six months off due to his injury. He hoped that this break would help him play for a few more years. He loves playing the game and has been playing in these tournaments since 1998.
His next tournament will be in three weeks in Dubai. Others upcoming tournaments include the Indian Wells and Miami. Best of luck to Federer in his upcoming tournaments!