History met its match Sunday at Wimbledon. And he goes by the name of Roger Federer. The Fed is back at # 1 and all is right in the world again.
When Roger turned 30, most of his critics started writing him off, favoring the much younger legs of Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic. For a while, it seemed like the Federer Express was losing its steam. In 2011, he failed to win any of the four Grand Slam tournaments, the first time of such since 2003. Federer lost against Djokovic in straight sets in the Australian Open. The King of Clay Nadal showed him no mercy in the French Open. Most shockingly, even though he was already up two sets to none against Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the quarterfinals of his favorite GS, the Wimbledon, Federer collapsed and squandered the win.
Then, in the 2012 US Open, he embarrassingly lost to Djokovic once again. This fueled the speculations that The Fed was on the decline, and a GS tournament win at the age of 30 is almost impossible. One day you're King, the next it seemed like the whole world was doubting you. The supposedly greatest tennis player of all time slipped to # 3 and was about to be done.
But Roger Federer is a champion of a different breed. While everyone was writing off his chances, he was busy preparinghimself.
He came back winning in Rotterdam, Dubai, Madrid, Indian Wells, and most especially, Wimbledon. A vintage Roger Federer showed up in England to dispatch Albert Ramos, Fabio Fognini, Julien Benneteau, Xavier Malisse, Mikhail Youzhny, and then current # 1 Novak Djokovic to secure his 8th finals appearance against Briton Andy Murray.
Murray was aggressive, but as they say, when you're playing Roger Federer at his best, you don't stand a chance. Federer's serve was back and he kept on hitting his corners. And in the 7th game, which turned out to be the crucial one, Fed sealed the 6th break point of the game to end the 26 point game to go up 4-2. And from then on, it was just Federer all over the court with his shots.
On July 8, 2012, amidst the swirl of the wind and the unforgiving London weather, Roger Federer won his 7th Wimbledon title-- his 17th GS title overall-- and reclaimed his rightful place as the best of the best, yet again.
It was the day that reminded us all that hard work and perseverance pays off-- and it pays off rather well. It also reminded us that no matter what the world thinks about you, if you stay focused, your will and your determination will carry you through.
I'm not sure who cried the hardest last night: him, me, or Andy Murray. Murray will not be disregarded. He fought well and my heart goes out to him. Someday, he will get his own GS trophy to lift. And rightfully, Andy, you're getting closer.
But for now, let the Swiss Maestro enjoy his date with history, in seventh heaven.
