Roger Federer yesterday won for the 79th time at the United States Open, but it didn’t come easy. The back spasms he suffered during a loss in the final at Montreal early this month prevented him from appearing in any other tune-up tournament, and the rust showed. He needed five sets, and three match points, to overcome relatively inexperienced Frances Tiafoe, all of 19 and hitherto unable to move past the second round of any major championship. As he acknowledged in the aftermath, “I didn’t have the preparation I was hoping to get.”
Still, Federer has reason to wax optimistic moving forward. After having failed to compete at Flushing Meadows last year due to knee and back issues, he finds himself in the familiar position of crowd favorite. More importantly, he’s riding on the strength of two Grand Slam titles this season, no mean feat at 36 and coming off a prolonged absence from the sport. And with injuries forcing the younger and supposedly better Andy Murray and Novac Djokovic to sit out the US Open, he looks poised to claim a third major trophy in a calendar year for the first time since 2007.
First things first, though, and Federer knows he has to hit the ground running in his next match if he wants to build momentum heading into the pivotal second week. The good news: He’s slated to go up against World Number 101 Mikhail Youzhny, has never beaten him in 16 meetings all told. Needless to say, it’s important for him to spend the least amount of time possible on the court; for all his experience, his fitness is essential for him to last a fortnight’s worth of burned rubber on the Pro DecoTurf, not to mention be at his best for his anticipated encounter with longtime nemesis Rafa Nadal in the semifinal round.
In the meantime, Federer can rest easy in the thought that he dodged a bullet. “In these best-of-five matches, you have a lot of lives sometimes,” he noted. “In the fifth, it’s a coin toss, and it went my way tonight.” And, if nothing else, he pointed out, the test showed that he’s in the pink of health. “To get through a five setter, you have to be okay somehow. So I believe this is going to give me great confidence in my body and also my game.”
Anthony L. Cuaycong has been writing Courtside since BusinessWorld introduced a Sports section in 1994. He is the Senior Vice-President and General Manager of Basic Energy Corp.
