It may have been the last time. It may have been the final function on the British lawn of the artist with a racket who made tennis look easy there, on unstable ground for most. Although it is (a lot) difficult to accept, it may have been his last greeting in the Center Court of Wimbledon Defeated, he walked crestfallen, bag and backpack slung over his shoulders, toward the locker room. Tormented inside, his ears were barely sweetened by the applause of that same audience that saw him shine like no other tennis player. He adjusted his hair and, before finally losing himself down that corridor at the head that led him to the locker room, He stopped for a moment, turned, looked up and raised his arms. The 14,900 spectators (capacity at one hundred percent) went crazy. But it was a sigh: the Swiss immediately followed his destiny. He lowered his head, wiped a few drops (tears?) From his face, and was gone.
In a month he will be 40 years old, Roger Federer. The quarterfinals at the All England [caída ante el polaco Hubert Hurkacz, 14° preclasificado, por 6-3, 7-6 (7-4) y 6-0, en 1h48m] may have marked his last appearance at the most prestigious Grand Slam in the world, in which he was consecrated eight times, the first in 2003, two years after achieving the “changing of the guard”, as the triumph against Pete Sampras was baptized in the 8th finals of 2001.
After two right knee surgeries in 2020, your body does not respond as it wants and that influences your entire gear. He built a career with a body in harmony, with a stupendous ability to anticipate plays rivals, a virtue that led him to suffer less athletic wear than the others. But you’re low on fuel today, Roger. It is logical; that’s life, Although it is very difficult to admit it. Federer did not withdraw (it is very likely that he will perform at the Tokyo Olympics, the US Open and more tournaments, if the body allows it), but the defeat of this July 7, 2021 against Hurkacz (24 years old) it was a kind of early farewell. Nothing will be as it was. His tennis is fading. Not so his legacy, of course, which goes far beyond the ranking or the titles.
“Do you think it was your last time on center court at Wimbledon?” , was the second question in English that Federer heard during the press conference. “I do not know. I really do not know. My goal was always to try to play another Wimbledon. The initial goal, as you know, was to play last year. Anyway, that was never going to happen. In addition to the blow of the pandemic [por las cirugías de rodilla]. I was able to do it this year, so I’m very happy. With everything that came after Wimbledon we were always going to sit down with the team and talk. I have to take a few days. We are going to talk in the next few days (…) I am very happy to have gone as far as I did here and to play Wimbledon at the level I had after everything I went through. Of course I would like to play it again, but at my age you are never sure what is around the corner ”, expressed the former number 1, current 8th.
It’s wise, Federer: you will not make hasty decisions. You don’t have the need to. And if you take into account the little activity it had in the season and how it arrived in London [luego de una dura derrota en los 8vos de final de Halle frente a Felix Auger-Aliassime, en la que públicamente afirmó no perdonarse su actitud], the task at Wimbledon was not bad, with triumphs over Adrian Mannarino, Richard Gasquet, Cameron Norrie (29th) and Lorenzo Sonego (23rd).
“Now that this is over, I must re-evaluate everything. I have to sit down, talk about what went well, what did not go so well, where is the body, where is the knee, where is the mind. As you can see, it was a struggle for me and an extra effort all the time, especially when the going got tough (…) I knew it was going to be very difficult, to be honest. Now I just have to talk to the team, take my time, not feel rushed by you or anyone else, for that matter. But no I hope that [el retiro] does not happen. The goal is to play, of course, ”said Federer, defeated by Hurkacz, this season’s champion of the Masters 1000 in Miami.
In his 22nd consecutive Wimbledon appearance (debuted in 1999), Federer was aiming to reach the semi-finals for the 14th time. They didn’t let it; could not. Since winning the junior singles and doubles titles in 1998 (paired with Belgian Olivier Rochus), All England has been the holy site where he starred in many of his best performances. Also He received setbacks, such as the 2008 final lost to Rafael Nadal or the 2017 definition against Novak Djokovic, after wasting two match points with his serve. On the sidelines, Wimbledon was always his biggest incentive. Also to try to feel competitive after going under the knife twice.
“There is always a weight that falls on your shoulders when a tournament ends. I feel terribly exhausted. I could go take a nap right now. This is how I feel. It’s a fun feeling, to be honest. You put everything on the line, and when it is all over, you can go to sleep because you are so mentally exhausted… The last 18 months have been long and hard. On the other hand, if I take perspective, I am always very happy for many things that happened in the last weeks, the last months. I know I will be optimistic again shortly. I feel like maybe I get very hard on myself, I get very sad, and then I spend a few hours, maybe a few days, who knows, and I will be totally fine again and be my old self, ”described Federer.
The flame, no matter how disconsolate, is consuming and there is a melancholic certainty: nothing will be the same.
Video | The amazing point of a 7-year-old boy who remembers Federer
