10 replies to this topic

[Wendy_redRobin]

Following the heartbreaking loss to Julien Benneteau in the quarterfinals at Rotterdam this year I guess one question many Federer Fans will be asking themselves is whether Roger will return to Rotterdam to play in the ABN AMRO WTT?







When Federer was asked this question in the post match presser he replied, "Hopefully this wasn’t my last time here."
Also it's worth noting that on 20th June 2012, Roger Federer had only confirmed he would be playing in Rotterdam in the 2013 season.






(File picture of Roger Federer with the Rotterdam 2012 trophy, will we ever see Roger Federer playing in Rotterdam again?)


In reality he is the only person that can truly answer that question but I am sure many of us have our own thoughts.



Here are my thoughts on whether Roger Federer will renew his contract with ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament for the 2014 season or not? (Before, I begin, let me clarify that this topic is for discussing whether Roger Federer will play again in Rotterdam. I sincerely hope that he will play for at least three more years on the Tour and represent his country at the Rio Olympics).



Unfortunately time is no longer on Roger's side and the blunt reality of life is that he will take longer to recover from an exacting physical test like reaching the final stages of a Grand Slam than younger players will do. Agreed that Julien Benneteau is the same age as Roger, give or take a couple of months, but when you compare the physical strains facing these players in the lead up to Rotterdam it is clear to see that Roger had the greatest test of his physical stamina as he had won through in the oppressive heat of Melbourne to the semi finals with that needle match against Murray, whereas Benneteau went out in the third round.


I guess it is all about how Roger will balance his love of playing the game against his desire to back his chances of lifting another trophy. As a Federer fan I love to see him play, but get deeply concerned for him when I watch him crumble as he did in Rotterdam this year. It must be very hard for him to deal with too. He is a man of principle and has so many friends and obligations to those friends in the tennis world, but to see him play when it is obvious that his is not totally fit, for the sake of an obligation is both honourable and desperately sad. Julien Benneteau had no reason to apologize for beating Roger, he was the better player on the night.


I also can't help but wonder what effect the Globe-trotting lifestyle of the tennis pro has, especially when they are moving from playing a tournament in a the height of summer to one being staged in mid winter, albeit an indoor tournament. When you are a youngster it is exciting. As you grow older with family commitments and the longer time it takes to recover it can be problematical.

I note that Mirka and the majority of his team were lacking (from what I saw on the replay videos) so Rotterdam was more of a solo effort from Roger's point of view. That must have been harder for him too emotionally. As his twins grow up the ease of moving across the world may become more complicated.

So in essence there are three major considerations.

1. His physical ability to recover from key tournaments.
2. How much emphasis he places on winning another Grand Slam.
3. Personal family issues.

For me, personally, I would love to see Roger lift another Grand Slam title and the one I would choose would be Wimbledon. For that I would forsake the smaller ATP Tournaments like Rotterdam but that is a decision only he can make and we as fans will no doubt support.



Please feel free to cast your vote in the poll & look forward to hear from you all on this.

[Vibhu batra]

Excellent article & topic to debate in to. Let me give my arguments ::

 

 

 

I personally love every thing about Netherlands, be it those amazing Flower Fields or those mesmerizing canals or those wonderful Fun Parks & Zoos. I have been a very big-2 fan of Taeke Taekema, Nistelrooy & of course, Richard Krajicek over these years. According to me, the DUTCH people are one of the most well behaved & friendly people in the world.

 

 

Now, that I have explained about how I feel for the Netherlands & the people, I can come back to the issue that we need to discuss here :-).

 

 

 

I really don't see Roger Federer extending his contract with Rotterdam. These are the 4 reasons ::

 

 

 

i) Slow courts:

 

 

People often ask me how & why Slow Courts impacts the play of aggressive short makers like Roger Federer?

 

 

 

As you all know, aggressive players like to keep the points as short as possible & try to go for more winners with their aggressive shots. In the process, you also find that players who are more aggressive tend to make more unforced errors also.

 

 

A slow court tends to give defensive players more opportunities as they can chase down more balls.

 

 

So, if Roger Federer has to keep himself fit till 2016 Olympics, he for sure will have to avoid playing in tournaments (especially the non slams, non masters) which have slow courts.

 

 

ii) Timing of Rotterdam :::

 

 

 

There were rumors that Rotterdam might get shifted as there were talks of Bercy masters getting preponed to February from 2014 onwards. But, as per the 2014 ATP schedule (which I posted in details here), there is no change in dates of Rotterdam in 2014 as well.

 

 

As Wendy explained above, it makes no sense to return back to European's winters for a week, especially when you have spent 20 days in Melbourne's heat & your next two tournaments are in the Desert cities : Dubai & Indian Wells, California .

 

 

 

iii) Outside possibility that Roger Federer might play in the Davis Cup in 2014:

 

 

 

Thou, its just my own assumption, but it that is to happen, then Federer will have to skip Rotterdam as Rotterdam starts 7 days after Davis Cup's first round.

 

 

 

iv) Only 90 ATP points to defend ::::

 

 

 

I know, its a very negative argument as more than defending 90 points, there's a chance that he might add up 410 points. But, as I mentioned above, if Roger Federer is to remain fit & motivated till 2016 Olympics, he will have to make a few compromises.

 

 

I repeat again, I would love to be wrong with all these assumptions & for the sake of all my friends in Netherlands, will hope that he plays there.

 

 

 

But, if I was in Roger Federer's think tank team, while planning 2014 schedule, I would have made a strong case for (unfortunately) dropping Rotterdam from Roger Federer's schedule in 2014...

[Inez]

Thou, I agree with every point that you guys have mentioned. But, I some how, feel, he will play Rotterdam in 2014. Thou, hard to say about 2015 at this point of time . I'm not sure, why I am saying that he will play in 2014, may be, just an intuition. But, 2014's Federer schedule promises to be more interesting than any other year's schedule .

[DenizYildiz]

I voted "no" but thats my ıdea.ıf roger wıll wın wımbeldon and us open,(he dıd those total 12 tımes) he should play rotterdam next year, because he can get the no1 back wıth a extra 410 pts wıth champıonshıp here.but ıf roger cant make 2 grandslam wın he shouldnt play and get tıred,no need to defend 90 pts no need to prove somethıng.also bad court...ı mean slow...

[sanalmj]

I am a die hard Federer fan and would rather switch off TV than to see him lose. I don't think Roger would return to Rotterdam again. As a matter of fact he might skip most indoors in coming season. This time while practicing Roger was not happy about the court. Rotterdam court was much slower than last time. Indoors used to be Roger's strength as the courts were faster and by approaching nets after serve, he used to win quick points and finish game in straight sets. With the courts getting slower he is clearly struggling against powerful baseliners like Berdych, Murray, Djoker, Delpo etc...and latest Benneteau...Same thing happened in Basel open when he eventually lost to Delpo..Again he lost to Delpo and Djoker in the WTF. Federer's impeccable serve has sort of deserted him ever since Wimbledon 2012. Plus he is no longer taking the ball (opponents serve included) early...He is playing the ball as late as possible and all court covering speed has also reduced...I doubt if he will be able to defend any of his 2012 wins...His best chance lies with Wimbledon 2013...There ball would stay low and ball would travel faster on grass surface and with his net crushing approach he will be able to win points quickly...By end of 2013 there is every possibility that Federer might erode to No.5 or No.6...Sad but likely... :-(
SMJ

[Wendy_redRobin]

You make some good points about slow courts. I am embarrassed to admit that I sometimes have difficulty in seeing the ball in some of the Highlights Videos, let alone gauge how fast the court is ...

[Wendy_redRobin]

With the aid of an Internet translation tool, I have endeavoured to post below a fair interpretation of Lieze's comment. Apologies if it is not completely accurate.


As FEDERISTA FAITHFUL, I think that Roger should exercise more, and train less. In Rotterdam he mentioned he was tired of training and wanted to play, and he was the top seed. Frankly he is thin for his height. As for the family not being with him continuously, instead they are waiting for him at home, this would be normal as the girls may be starting to go to school. And what will we do without ROGER FEDERER?

Lieze Rodrigues

[Wendy_redRobin]

In an interview with Jim Courier during the Australian Open Roger did joke about his muscles. He may not be overtly muscle bound in the upper body but he is certainly able to trade shots with players who are and has the physical stamina to last through gruelling 5 set matches. In fact it was Julien Benneteau who succumbed with muscle cramps during their match at Wimbledon last year.

Roger's ability to look after his body has kept him amazingly free of serious injury when you think of it. Players like Juan Martin DelPotro and more recently Rafa Nadal have had to take time out of the tour due to injury requiring more lengthy treatment.

With more careful planning of his schedule and selection of Tournaments he plays in the coming years, I sincerely hope Roger will enchant us with his magical touch for more years to come. I would rather see him play fewer tournaments and be fully prepared so he can give it his best shot, than appear to be obliged to play to honour a commitment when things were clearly not 100% That is heartbreaking to watch.