Federer gives rein to his talent

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Switzerland’s Roger Federer has taken the tennis world by storm over the past 12 months.

In an interview with swissinfo, sports journalist René Stauffer reflects on the 22-year-old’s progress and assesses his chances at Wimbledon.

Stauffer, who writes for the “Tages-Anzeiger” and the “SonntagsZeitung”, has watched Federer rise through the ranks, developing from a promising junior to world number one.

He believes the Basel player has the all-round game to become one of the sport’s greats.

swissinfo: How do you rate his chances of winning the title again this year?

René Stauffer: I think that considering his form at the moment he should be the huge favourite, together with Tim Henman who obviously hasn’t won a big tournament so far and is under special pressure to do so.

swissinfo: Federer has just won at Halle in Germany, so his grass-court game must be pretty much in tune.

R.S.: What happened last year seems to be repeating itself. Last year he won Halle and was on a high coming into Wimbledon and won that one as well.

Now he has won Halle again and this time he knows he can win the big ones. He even says his game is better than last year. He has won three tournaments on grass in succession and has won 17 matches on grass in a row. That is quite an unbelievable achievement.

swissinfo: Watching him now, there don’t appear to be any weak aspects to his game. He also seems to be very strong mentally, especially on the big points, which is the mark of a true champion. Does he have any weaknesses?

R.S.: It’s not so much a question of weaknesses with Federer but rather what aren’t his biggest strengths. His backhand is not a shot that wins matches, but it’s not a shot that loses matches either. All the other players hit to his backhand because it’s not as strong as his forehand. But it’s not a weak shot by any means.

swissinfo: Essentially, you’re saying he doesn’t really have a weakness.

R.S.: That’s right, and that’s what everybody says. There hasn’t been such a complete player for years. Looking back at all the past champions, you could always find some kind of weakness – even with [Pete] Sampras.

Some experts go so far as to say that Roger Federer is the most complete player since Rod Laver – and Rod Laver is the only man who won the Grand Slam twice, once as a pro and once as an amateur.

swissinfo: Before he won Wimbledon many people questioned whether he had the temperament to win a major championship. Now he seems very focused when he’s playing. What’s responsible for this change?

R.S.: Obviously a lot of this has to do with the mental side. If people say you are not good under pressure, maybe it creeps into your head a little bit even if it’s not true.

But his last coach, Peter Lundgren, used to say that if he won a big one then it could be like an avalanche: he could keep on winning. This seems to be quite a telling statement now, as it’s turned out to be true.

swissinfo: After he beat Roddick and Agassi at the Masters Cup in December they both turned round and said he’s the best player out there. That must give him plenty of confidence.

R.S.: True, but now I think we have reached an interesting point because Wimbledon is coming again and he has to prove himself again. Boris Becker said the first Wimbledon wasn’t the most important title for him; it was the second one, because one year later he came back and proved that he wasn’t just a one-time champion.

That’s now the big question: can Roger keep this streak alive and win Wimbledon again? To be honest, anything less than a win would be a failure. Even if he lost in the final or the semi-final.

swissinfo: Since splitting with Peter Lundgren at the end of last year, he has won five tournaments including the Australian Open. He doesn’t seem to be doing too badly on his own. Does he need a new coach?

R.S.: Roger has astonished himself with how well this year has gone. He didn’t expect to have another big year, because he has been playing a lot of tournaments, the expectations are high and he is in the media spotlight.

With him winning all these matches again this year, one could be tempted to say he doesn’t need a coach. But what happens if he starts to lose and gets into a slump? That’s a whole other situation.

He can improve a little on his own, but only up to a point. He knows that one day he is going to need another coach. But at the moment there is absolutely no urgency.

swissinfo: How is he regarded abroad?

R.S.: In the beginning Federer wasn’t a big name, even when he was a top-ten or a top-five player. In Switzerland, we knew how well he could play: he has proven himself in the Davis Cup for many years now – proof that he belongs with the best.

They only realised this internationally in the last 12 months. The attention and praise he is getting wherever he goes has gone from zero to 100. The United States is perhaps the only country he has not completely conquered so far. His Masters victory was a big step in the right direction, but unless you win the US Open you are not seen as a true champion out there.

swissinfo: Do people back home expect him to return with the Wimbledon title?

R.S.: To be honest, the expectations are much higher than that. Because if you look back, history tells us that there are only a few players capable of winning Wimbledon, and if you are one of them it’s common that you keep on winning Wimbledon again.

Remember Borg did it five times, Laver four times, McEnroe and Becker three times. Federer is only 22, so it will be interesting to see whether he can retain his title. The expectations are that he will, because he has the game and all the weapons to do it.

swissinfo-interview: Adam Beaumont