Just a year ago, it seemed almost unthinkable for Federer to lose his No. 1 ranking anytime soon. He had survived Nadal’s onslaught at Wimbledon and had dominated the indoor season with the victory at the year ending championships. Fast forward a few months and Federer is barely hanging on to No. 2 position. In fact, Fed could lose No. 2 if he fails to reach the quarters, and Novak goes on to win the title. Now many are asking why Federer has fallen so fast…
It’s really simple. Federer was playing out of his mind for the past few years. But he was going for hots that a normal human being wouldn’t be able to make in a consistent basis. You could say that he was going for 10% shots but making them 80% of the time. Well. The law of averages do catch up with you, and that’s why Federer is missing some of those shots. But the other reason for Federer’s incredible run was his confidence. You combine genius and confidence together and you have one powerful mix. Federer today doesn’t have the confidence though his genius is intact. Time is not on his side, and his confidence against Nadal seems to have all but shattered after the heardbreaking Wimbledon loss.
Nadal on the other hand is not as genius of a shotmaker as Federer, but he is close. But his level is so consistent that you can’t find a player who can go toe to toe with him for 5 sets. People give him 1 or 2 sets but ultimately winning 3 sets matters. More than that, nadal is supremely confident on the tour now. He has reversed his losses against Federer, Blake, Youzhny, Berdych, and now Djokovic, so there doesn’t seem to be anyone who goes into a match with Nadal thinking that he can be beaten. That is recipe for disaster really (which is why we have seen so many dominating results lately for Nadal).
Federer Nadal rivalry is more than about tennis. It shows you that in any sport, consistency ultimately beats genius. Whether it’s in tennis, soccer or MMA.