After Roger’s loss to Roddick in Miami, Fed fans now have to wait 5 weeks for his next spell of competitive tennis in the Madrid Masters.
To make the wait that little easier I’ve decided to put together a compilation of Roger’s top shots of the 2012 season so far, so let’s crack on:
Backhand vs. Davydenko in Rotterdam Semi Final
This point is from the highly entertaining match aginst Nikolay Davydenko in Rotterdam. The point is at 0-15 at 3-3 in the second set after Fed had dropped the first set. Had he slipped to 0-30 he may have not found a way back but this flawless backhand changed the course of match and Roger took it 4-6 6-3 6-4.
The Rally against Lopez in Dubai
This is just one of those amazing rallies that you have to admire, it comes from Rogers win against Feliciano Lopez in Dubai. Unlike most “top points” it wasn’t a moment of genius by Roger to win the point, in fact he should have lost it. But the court coverage, the no look over the shoulder forehand retrieving a lob and the execution of the overhead whilst running backwards just showcase this guy’s talent.
The Sickest of Drop Shots vs. Kudla in Indian Wells
A sick dropshot in a match where Roger was actually sick himself! This one comes from Roger’s second round win in Indian Wells against Kudla. Roger fought off flu throughout this match and still managed to come up with blinding shots like this one that require a touch of magic to execute.
The Backhand Flick vs. Tomic in Australia
Video removed 🙁
This one is taken from the 1st Grand Slam of the year where Federer beat Tomic in the 4th round and provides the peRFect example of what happens when you try outfox the master of outfoxing. Slightly complacent from Tomic but the racket head control to get underneath the ball and steer it up the line is from another planet.
The Lob against Ivo Karlovic
Before this shot you’d think it would be impossible to lob a 6ft 10″ opponent at the net but once again Federer proved anything is possible when he’s yielding his Wilson racket. In the crucial opening set tie break against big serving Ivo Karlovic, Roger managed to track down a ball that trickled over the net and lob the Croat to keep his 1st set hopes alive. He went onto win the match in straight sets and once again nullified his opponents serve with an array of devastating backhand returns.
The Forehand on the Run against Llodra
An exquisite forehand on the run from Roger here against Llodra in Dubai. He hits the ball so well and it reminds me of a shot he hit against Andreev at the Australian Open a few years back. Llodra hits a near perfect volley and Roger moves effortlessly to hit the bending pass up the line.
The defense vs. Nadal in Indian Wells
Video removed 🙁
Unfortunately I can’t find a video that only shows this point against Nadal in Indian Wells, so you’ll have to skip through the video to 13:35 Update: figured how to start embedded videos at a set time! The point comes at 30-30 and shows Roger hustling to get match point. Whilst you’re at it you may as well watch the booming ace he serves up on match point to take the match! Allez.
Forehand Half Volley vs. Nadal in Australia
This one is the only shot in the collection in a losing match from Roger, here it’s against Nadal in the Australian Open Semi Final. Even though he’s 2 sets to 1 down, Roger is still able to come up with shots like this. Epic.
The defense against Del Potro in Dubai
Video removed 🙁
Another one where I only have the full highlights reel, the point I’m talking about here is at 6-6 in the 2nd set tie break (6:32 in the video). Roger here absorbs every ground stroke of Del Potro and eventually draws the Argentine into making an error. On this point he was extremely patient, moved great and hung in the point when he could have easily gone for too much on one of his ground strokes and made an error.
So there you have it, my favourite points of 2012 so far. If you enjoyed this post remember to check out the 2 compilation posts I made in the middle of last year showcasing the Top 20 Shots Roger has made during his career – Part 1 here and Part 2 here.
It’s also worth mentioning there’s some great compilation of points from each tournament on YouTube so feel free to check them out:
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Photo Credit: JiteshJagadish
hey, great videos!
If you can’t a single video with the shots you wanted, you can make the long youtube videos to start at your given time by using -> Share -> Options -> Start at X:XX on youtube or you can do it manualy by adding eg.: ?t=13m35s at the end
Hey!
Ah I never knew that, thanks for the tip, I’ll be using that one time and time again 😀
Update – if anyone else is reading this then if you’re wanting to start a video at a certain time using the new YouTube embed code you add the following onto the vid URL #t=440 where 440 is the number of seconds. So if you want a video to start at 4 minutes 20 seconds its (4 x 60) + 20. 260 seconds.
Cool! Tried it – worked very well.
The ATPWorldTour website announced rule changes that serves must be limited no more than 100mph. They even released a video with people strongly agreeing. I then was like – F*** you! How’s Fed supposed keep his serve as a weapon like he does now if there was a 100mph limit. Eventually at the end of the video they said it was an April Fools joke. Lol, it would of suited Nadal and Murray!
Haha I haven’t seen that. Will check it out!
My April fools would have been they are cancelling Miami and replacing it with a grass court tournament. Although thinking about it, that would be a great idea!
My friend and I are discussing about Fed’s top 10 (winning) matches of 2011. I had
10.Federer vs Tsonga Rome
9.Federer vs Wawrinka Australian Open
8.Federer vs Berdych Bercy
7.Federer vs Monaco US Open
6.Federer vs Davydenko Doha
5.Federer vs Simon Australian Open
4.Federer vs Del Potro Cincinnati
3.Federer vs Nadal WTF
2.Federer vs Nishikori Basel
1.Federer vs Djokovic Roland Garros
Which top ten would you of had?
Good list man! To be honest I think mine is identical, maybe switched around a little.
If we are only going on winning matches then I think finding 10 is tough because the vast majority of them were pretty easy, it’s only in the later rounds when the exictement tends to begin:
Here are my top 5 though:
1. Federer vs. Djokovic French Open
2. Federer vs. Nadal WTF
3. Federer vs. Simon Australian Open
4. Federer vs. Monaco US Open
5. Federer vs. Berdych Bercy
And my favourites of this year so far have been: Davydenko in Rotterdam, Del Potro in Dubai, Murray in Dubai and Nadal in Indian Wells.