There's God, There's Man, and There's Roger Federer

Fedelicious, that's how one of the banners held by a fan at the Australian Open 2007. It's not surprising, the popularity of one of the greatest players of tennis today, Roger Federer or Fed-ex or the champion, or numerous other names by which he is called. I will not get into the debate of whether he's the greatest tennis player of the open era, or closed era. He's a genius on the court, like an Einstein, an Edison, a Newton, a Schumacher, a Tiger Woods, a Maradona and host of others. I simply can't stop marveling at him,his brand of tennis, and his nerves.

Today was another display of the magnificence that we got used to for the past few years. Down two set points to Fernando Gonzalez, the nerves he displayed to come back into the set and win it were awe inspiring. The match which started of as coolly as the breezy conditions in Melbourne park, turned much placid as Federer took control of the match and went on to win the championship. It was 2hrs of magic, with both Fernando and Federer taking on each other at Rod Laver Arena. Taking nothing away from Fernando, who did every thing human to overcome the "Fed express", it was the master at his best.

10Grand slams in 4years and still going, I am sure he will add at least one more this year (It's good to lose sometimes ;) ) that is an awesome record. When I look at the statistics of some of the players like Bjorn Borg, Jimmy Connors, Ivan Lendl, John McEnroe, Pete Sampras, yes Federer has some way to go, but I am sure he will surpass them one and all. Forget it even if he doesn't I don't care. What I have seen over the last few years, and what I am going to see in the next few years can never match any statistics. I am sure it is the same with millions of fans out there. Yes we want him to win at the end of the day, but what really matters is he keep playing this wonderful brand of tennis that is very much his own.

I truly believe Federer sees the tennis ball as a football in his mind. The way he comes up with some audacious shots, the way he returns some unimaginable stuff of his opponents, the way he ups his game to match the occasion, the way he managed to stay at the top, is simply amazing. And one thing is for sure, he is not a short term wonder (we have seen many in the past), he has risen through the ranks. Most of the players who fail to read him today, had their days in the past, it is just that Federer seems to have dawned the knowledge of wisdom. Just like Siddartha turned to Buddha under the Bodhi tree, Federer transformed into a force, now its time for the rest of the pack, to follow him.

As the title of the post goes, in tennis today, There's God, There's Men, and There's Roger Federer.