By Praveen Chunduru
What do legends strive for? How much of a legacy is enough? After scaling every peak, what makes a repeat climb so attractive to some? Questions flood my mind on the eve of Roger Federer’s match against Rafael Nadal on Jan 28, 2014, in the Semifinals of the Australian Open.
Two heroes, consistently being challenged and outdone by younger, newer, more energetic and stronger opponents, find themselves once again facing each other, smiling, both to themselves and to each other, thinking of the irony: not too long ago, they pushed the frontiers of tennis, they challenged established greats, hit the last shot, and looked forward to being at the pinnacle of the tennis world. Both find themselves thinking about how quickly it has all gone by, just how fleeting physical fitness and reflexes are, and how inevitable the decline always is. Although, both still push themselves to their extreme and still continue to extend the boundaries of how much fatigue a human body can endure, they both know that tennis is a game of the young and the fresh. The last three years have been a testament to that, as Federer’s speed and reflexes slowed down a touch, and injury kept Rafaels hitherto unfettered climbs to the top in check. Both are now forced to let a few shots go by, and focus increasingly on playing smarter, rather than more physically taxing, tennis.
Federer meets Nadal at the net before the start of the match, and smiles as widely as he always does when the two meet, shares a joke or two, but unlike previous times, holds the close handshake a little longer, almost to signal that he is happy that it is his old friend, the man with whom he shared this extraordinary journey, that he is facing. For what feels like the first time in his career, Roger truly lives the moment before an important match, not as one spent thinking of strategy or calming down thoughts, but one cherished, spent appreciating the spectators, the referee, the court, his racket, the ball boys, and reflecting on how much he loves the sport.
And when the match starts, he is truly ready. There aren’t many more of these to come, he knows, and that magnifies his intensity. This Grand Slam too may not be his, and that increases his focus on the present match. When he tosses the ball in the air, he knows that at least in this moment, there isn’t anyone in the world who can serve better than him, that he has worked tremendously to get here, and being aware of that adds force to his serve. There isn’t anything to be lost from losing this match by taking the odd risk, and there isn’t anything to be gained by playing cautiously against Nadal, and so he plays in full flourish. The rocket forehand baseline winner follows the fluid backhand whip. The elegant dance toward the net follows the surgical serve. Federer plays fearlessly, minding neither the opponent nor the scoreline, as if the Open is his exhibition, not a championship to be won.
It matters not to me whether Federer wins this Semifinal. I want him to indulge in those beautiful shots of his that are considered too risky to be played at any competitive level, leave alone an Open semifinal. I want him to experiment. I want him to produce winners that neither he nor Rafa have produced before. I want him not to fear Rafa, but to push him. I want him not to tread carefully, but ballet around the court in his effortless grace. If he does this, win or lose, this match will be talked about for the rest of tennis history, not only as the legend’s greatest match, but as the finest hour of tennis itself. The match, in which, the grandest exponent of the beautiful sport fully expressed himself. I want this Semifinal to be Roger Federer’s pièce de résistance.
Presently employed as an Investment Analyst with International Finance Corporation. His biggest hobby is writing. Dreams to write for The Economist, his favourite magazine. In TIE, he tries to focus on writing from experience and observation than from research. He hopes that you find his articles convincing sometimes, disagreeable sometimes, but thought-provoking and enjoyable, always. Email Id: p6blue@gmail.com.