Federers cup

The story of his last push to the pinnacle of glory.

Roger Federer after

WIMBLEDON 2007 came to a dazzling climax in bright sunshine when Roger Federer defeated Rafael Nadal in five pulsating sets. It lifted the championships out of the gloom cast by the wind and the rain that had dogged the fortnight. The final was an encounter of sublime quality. It was better than any vintage clash stored in the Wimbledon cellar. Nadals spirited and unyielding resistance pushed Federer beyond his limits. The emotional and physical intensity was such that it breached Federers alpine calm. Disputing a Hawkeye call in the fourth set, Federer screamed at the umpire: How in the world was the ball in? Shit, look at the score now. Its killing me. Hawkeye is killing me. The Hawkeye call helped Nadal secure a double break of serve and win the fourth set.

The fulcrum of the match was the first five games of the fifth set. Down 15/40 in two of his service games, Federer had his back to the wall. Can there be any greater test than serving to Nadal champing at the bit with his bristling muscles waiting to unleash that whirling forehand at break point? Federer met the challenge head on. Like a true champion he did not wait for Nadals errors but stepped up his serve, raised his game and hit winning shots. Four games in a row pulled Federer back from the precipice. As Nadal said just one or two points made all the difference.

With five consecutive Wimbledon titles in a tally of 11 Grand Slams, Federer is now in orbit alongside Rod Laver and Bjorn Borg. The last two celestials, Roy Emersen (12) and Pete Sampras (14), are now in Federers sights and seem to be within range. A two-year injury-free run could take Federer past them.

Venus Williams celebrates

Accolades for Nadal have been few. The media have grossly underrated Nadals awesome performance. Having spent a lifetime playing 7 to 10 ft (2 to 3 metres) behind the baseline, Nadal, in a matter of three weeks, adjusted his timing to hit an early ball from much closer the baseline. Furthermore, he did not hesitate to venture to the net, a manoeuvre he very seldom uses on clay. In the future the Federer-Nadal rivalry will enrich the game and may push it to higher levels. Some rallies in the final of 18 to 20 shots, with both players hitting with all their might, were absolutely astonishing. One wonders whether there is any scope for future improvement. Nadal is now a fast-closing blip on Federers radar even on the fast surfaces.

Novak Djokovic is an exciting prospect. In John McEnroes view: You are going to see him in the top couple of players in the world, pushing Nadal and Federer. Twenty-one-year-old Richard Gasquet of France was the other semi-finalist. He went down tamely to Federer. Seeded 12, Gasquet was down two sets to love and four games to two in the third set against Andy Roddick when he lashed out and hit more than 80 clean winners in a magical spell.

It was like a fireworks display that blew the 140 (224 km an hour) mph-serving Roddick off the court. Against Federer, Gasquet seemed to be totally drained by his efforts against Roddick on the previous day and could offer only token resistance. In the rest of the mens final, Tomas Berdych, the 65 tall (1.9 m) 21-year-old Czech with his powerful serve and all-court game, seems to have the credentials of a Grand Slam winner.

The return of Venus Williams was the story of the womens championships. Three times champion, in 2000, 2001 and 2005, Venus, now ranked 31, came back from a six-month injury lay-off, to win her fourth title. Seeded 23, Venus struggled through the earlier rounds and went on to demolish Maria Sharapova, Svetlana Kuznetsova and Ana Ivanovic to reach the final.

Rafael Nadal in

At her best, Venus is unbeatable on grass. Her victim in the final was 22-year-old Marion Bartoli, seeded 18, from France. Double-fisted on both sides, Bartoli looks deceptively docile. Her high percentage of successful first serves (not in the final though) and consistent early hit ground shots, executed without roaring like a lion, were smooth and deadly. The power comes from a smooth swing and not muscle. The final was closer than the score of 6-4, 6-1 indicates. Bartoli had to contend with stage fright as this was her first Grand Slam final and she was facing the best womens grass court player in the world. Venus moved smoothly like a cheetah on the run, intercepting Bartolis passing shots with her telescopic reach. The power and pressure were too much for Bartoli, who has modelled her game on the great Monica Seles. If Bartoli can get stronger and improve her movement she could become a contender for the top 10. She captivated the centre court with her quiet simplicity and innocent looks.

The two outstanding teenagers in the womens matches were Ivanovic of Serbia, who reached the semi-finals, and Nicole Vaidisova of the Czech Republic. Though Vaidisova lost to Ivanovic in the quarter-finals, after having three match points, her metronomic ground shots have the power and class of a Grand Slam winner. Like Sharapova, Vaidisova trained at the Bolletieri Tennis Academy in Florida.

It was sad to see the demolition of Justine Henin, who, strangely, could not handle the double-fisted fare dished out by Bartoli. Henin seemed fatally anchored to her game. She could have made things very difficult for Bartoli by using a low shallow slice to the centre of the court and short sharp angles to exploit Bartolis restricted double-handed reach.

Bartoli in action

Amelie Mauresmo, the reigning womens champion, was nowhere near her best after a recent appendicitis operation. She was eliminated by Vaidisova in the fourth round. For India, the old warrior Leander Paes battled on. A quarter-finalist in both the mens and mixed doubles, Paes maintained an Indian presence in the championships until the second Saturday.

Mahesh Bhupathi, no less in stature, withdrew from the mens doubles as his partner, Radek Stephanek was down with fever. In the mixed doubles, Sania Mirza and Bhupathi lost in the second round. In my view, Sania is better in doubles than in singles, and she and Bhupathi could develop into a top-class team. Though Sania looks fitter and has improved her game, she was short of match practice.

She suffered a 6-2, 6-2 loss at the hands of the 11th seeded Nadia Petrova in the second round. At the higher-ranking levels, womens tennis is very strong and Sania, whose ranking hovers around the 35 mark, will have a very difficult job to break through to the top 20.

Some of the teenagers at the top levels of the womens game, are 6 ft (1.8 m) and over in height, stronger and more athletic than Sania. However, this is not a dead end for her. With good coaching, total dedication, perseverance and a bit of luck, Sania can bring down some of the women in the top 10.