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Tryst with destiny

It was always when rather than whether Roger Federer would equal Pete Sampras’ record of 14 Grand Slam titles. But his tryst with destiny came in a most unexpected fashion. It happened on the slow clay courts of Roland Garros, where this outrageously talented champion is at his most vulnerable. It happened without his having to combat formidable rivals such as Rafael Nadal, Andy Murray, and Novak Djokovic, all of whom suffered shock defeats. It came at a time when Fe derer’s own powers seemed diminished; before this, he had won only one fairly minor tournament in 2009. The victory at the elusive French Open earns him, almost incidentally in comparison with the 14 Slams, a career Grand Slam, something that only five other players have pulled off in tennis history. It erases any smidgeon of doubt about the great Swiss man’s ability on clay, which should never have existed considering that he was a losing finalist at Roland Garros for three successive years. Like a final jewel in the crown, it settles his place as the greatest all-surface tennis player of the modern era.

No, it wasn’t smooth passage. Federer had his slices of luck, scraping past an inspired Tommy Haas and a vastly improved Juan Martin Del Potro. But history will record this triumph as a hugely significant event in the story of tennis and in the career of this champion, whose achievements read like a fairy tale. It took the great Pete Sampras 12 years to amass his 14 Slams; it has taken Federer only seven, despite the lean pickings of the last two years. What next for this supremely gifted and endearingly unassuming 27-year-old genius? It is unlikely that he will ever dominate the tennis world in the manner he did between 2003 and 2007, when he seemed virtually impregnable. That kind of supremacy is difficult to retain in an environment that has seen the emergence of players such as Nadal, Djokovic, and Murray. But while the best years may be behind him, Federer retains the talent, the firepower, and the will to remain at or near the top of the pack. In an extraordinarily gracious tribute, Pete Sampras characterised Federer as the “greatest player to play the game” and predicted he would add more Slams to his kitty. The world of tennis will certainly hope so. If only for the continued pleasure of seeing Roger in action — the seemingly effortless grace with which he wields a tennis racquet, the languid brilliance of his half volleys flicked up the alleys, the panache with which he hits angled crosscourt winners, his rare tennis intelligence, and the magnificent spirit of sportsmanship that he shares with the likes of Sampras and Nadal.

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