By Ritesh Gupta
Is Roger Federer going through any “first set scare” phenomenon?
For Federer, this may not be an issue at all, but his die-hard supporters are going through some anxious moments of late.
It might be a self-imposed situation or one which is arising due to the initial exuberance of his opponents, but Federer does seem to be taking longer than usual in wrapping up the first set in the ongoing French Open.
One can’t help thinking the same. Going by his first two rounds in the only Grand Slam on clay, the defending champion is taking time in settling down. Also, recently, during the ATP World Tour Masters 1000 in Madrid, he lost the first set against Rafael Nadal (Federer lost the final, too), won 7-5 against David Ferrer in the semis and lost 3-6 to Ernests Gulbis before avenging his recent defeat to the Latvian in the quarterfinal.
Despite these hiccups, it has to be remembered that Federer and Grand Slams can be a nightmarish proposition for any pro. But still, if there is any opportunity of pushing Federer, one has to grab chances early in the match.
At the French Open, Federer hasn’t lost these first set battles. They are definitely quite close, more than one would expect. Importantly, the way Federer comes out from these challenges only show the class of the Swiss.
During the second round match against Alejandro Falla in Paris today, Federer did struggle in the first set. He committed 21 unforced errors. To his credit, his left-handed rival made most of the long rallies and held serve without much fuss in the initial stages. Falla did break Federer’s serve in the 11th game. But the Colombian failed to serve out the set. More than Federer’s tenacity, the turn of events had to do more with self-belief of Falla.
Twice, Federer achieved mini-breaks in the first set tie-break with a couple of fabulous strokes. At 3-3, he went for a blazing backhand down the line to force a volley winner. And then, again, at 5-4, he went for an outright forehand cross-court winner. Falla finally gave up with an error.
Even though Federer missed a couple of forehands in the tie-break, it was Federer who forced the pace. The class, as usual, was written all over when it mattered the most.
There are times when Federer’s opponents, too, just fail to rise to the occasion or succumb to the pressure.
Looking at the scoreline between Federer and his first round rival, Peter Luczak, there might not be much to read. But the Australian just stroked error after error in the crucial 10th game before losing the first set.
Like Luczak, Falla, too, lost his fizz in similar fashion after dropping the first set. Falla lost 6-7 (4-7), 2-6, 4-6.
Luczak went down 4-6, 1-6, 2-6 earlier this week.
Both Luczak and Falla did their bit, but the man on the other side didn’t give them much of a chance once he got into his groove.
Federer might be starting off slowly. But he is still finishing his job with aplomb.