Roger - So near, yet so far!!!

Yet another bright and sunny day @ the Wimbledon.   July 06, 2014 witnessed one of the greatest Wimbledon finals between Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic @ the center court.   Any five setters would always be a nail biting contest as it opens up the door of opportunity to grab the “Ultimate” in a blink!  An unforced error or a gigantic serve can seal the fate of an epic contest!  This match was no different.  Federer tried his heart out to lift the Trophy one more time to go past the legend, Pete Sampras’s record of 7 Wimbledon titles.   But, Djokovic was determined enough to stop him and kiss the trophy for the second time and to his luck (with Federer’s big heart to let Novak win as Novak rightly mentioned during post match presentation), Pendulum swung in his favor as the see-saw battle tested even the steel nerves of many!!!

There is not much difference when you see the match statistics… Top aces against backhand baseline precision, serve and volley against lofted volley, quality smashes against forehand passing, class against stamina and last but not the least, the gigantic career of Federer against the rising one of Djokovic!!!

For Roger, it was a comeback.  His determination even at the age of 32, worth a mention!!! His Will to play fire with fire had literally seen the Wimbledon grass burnt along the baseline.   A match that witnessed quite a few long volleys with the precision touch of Roger on each passing shot!  I am sure it would have given him the confidence to come back much stronger…. Only the stamina, legs & appetite of Novak can get near to those! With Edberg as his coach, his game of serve and volley with a deft touch has Edberg’s coaching manual written all over it!  Ofcourse, we can’t take away Federer’s master class… He is a Master in his own right!!!

Now the Champion… Novak is undoubtedly the emerging champion of Grass!  Though he may not have that powerful forehand with angle that Nadal creates or the backhand whipping elegance of Roger, Novak has the greatest return of Serves in the Game… that puts him right at the top!!!  Almost in all the big games, he thrives on that advantage of his wonderful service return… To me, that was like a knock-out punch!  With that, he can break the confidence of even a Master of Aces like Goran Ivanisevic!!!  He does it, so natural!! To me, Novak has all the time in the World to catch up with Federer and of course, he is riding high and has got that Talent!!!

25 years passed by… but, the epic story continues!  Those days it was the dodgy determination of Becker vs. the sheer flair of Edberg.  Every time Becker loses to Edberg, I would go down on my knees with moist eyes and cry the whole night.  He inflicted that pain of losing amidst trying hard!!!  Becker was undoubtedly, My Hero those days!   May be coz’ I Loved the way he prepares to Serve (like a dancing baby!), runs hard in to the net,  throws himself over the ball, rolls at least a few times on the court…. My showman, “dirty Hero” on the court!!!

Who can imagine 2014 can witness the same Edberg and Becker but, this time playing the role of Coach fighting it out? I am a big fan of Roger… but, a bigger fan of my Hero, Boris…. When Boris trains someone and that some one lifts the trophy in Wimbledon against Stefan’s Roger, it is by far the greatest achievement of Novak you may think!!!  Yes, Novak did it.  The executor!!! But, carve my Hero’s name as well who was the mastermind behind that execution. Though Djokovic didn’t specifically mention Becker in the post-match presentation, everyone knows the value of Boris…that is to me, “Invaluable”. 

“The Invaluable message of not to lose your heart and try hard until you succeed!!!”

I consider this as Becker’s Revenge!!!  Revenge, I was eagerly waiting for 25 years!!!  

My son cried for Roger tonight… Who knows!!!  He needs that Will and Patience to wait for another 25 years to see Roger’s revenge!!!

Worth waiting, my son!!!  History repeats!!!