‘It’d take an incredible turn of events for Roger Federer to…’, says analyst
Roger Federer lost to Tomas Berdych in the 2010 Wimbledon quarterfinals, failing to reach the semifinals for the first time since 2002. Roger failed to contend for the Wimbledon trophy after another quarterfinal loss in 2011, falling to Jo- Wilfried Tsonga after wasting a huge lead.
Jo-Wilfried came back from two sets down in a 3-6 6-7 6-4 6-4 6-4 win and became the first player to overcome that deficit against Federer at Majors. The Frenchman prevailed in three hours and eight minutes and advanced to his first Wimbledon semi-final, taking another step forward from 2010.
It could have been the first year with the top four seeds in the semis since 1995. Still, Tsonga managed to turn the tide, trailing Federer by ten points but facing just one break point in the entire match. The Frenchman served well after that, stealing the Swiss once in sets three, four and five to advance to the semi-finals.
Interestingly, Roger got that break in the second game of the encounter and couldn’t repeat it for the next three hours and four minutes, showing just how well Tsonga served in the rest of the clash. A return winner gave Jo-Wilfried a break point in game five.
Roger denied it with a solid serve before playing against another break point after Jo-Wilfried’s volley winner. The Swiss eliminated him with a well-constructed point and hit two service winners to take it home and carve out a 4-1 lead.
With the score at 5-3, Federer hit three service winners to win the set in just 27 minutes, hoping the rest of the match would be the same. Both players served well in the second set, offering no break chances before the tie break.
Roger made it 7-3 after a forehand winner down the line to extend the lead after just 74 minutes and move closer to the finish line.
King Roger underwent knee surgery
Roger Federer has been on the sidelines for more than a year now.
“Federer is giving fans a better idea of his rehab process after his knee surgery of last summer. His social media posts and quotes indicate a late-season return to competition. A big question will be: Can Roger play the best-of-five format the Majors demand in 2023, when he will be 41 years old,” Shriver said.
“Regardless of Federer’s comeback pathway, winning a 21st singles Major seems impossible given his knees, age and the effort it takes to win seven matches with a three-of-five-set format,” she added.
