Any fan of Roger Federer who feels a little blue now that Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic have commanded the headlines, and the question of how much game the 30-year old has left in his tank is here to stay, needs only to tune into the Tennis Channel telecast of the Dubai tournament to find a better, brighter world.
As today's match between Federer and Feliciano Lopez amply demonstrated, Federer worship in the Dubai commentary booth was of epidemic proportions. I'm not going to name names, but here are a few chestnuts:
"He doesn't seem to move on the court, he hovers. . ." Kind of like a big helicopter? What?
In the middle of the first set, when Federer forces a volley error with a backhand, cross-court pass: "That was that 'horribly weak' Federer backhand again. Most players would die for it!" Oh yeah? Go tell that to Novak Djokovic.
"He (Lopez) is playing one of the, if not the, greatest returner in the game. . ." Djokovic and Andy Murray, among others, may dispute that point; everyone knows that Federer's return game isn't in the same league as his hold game, but there you go. . .
I actually felt bad for the poor guy who dropped those pearls of wisdom, without once trying to put some of those outlandish comments into perspective. Perhaps Federer's backhand looks more lethal in Dubai than in some other places because of the relatively fast, low-bounce court? That might be worth mentioning.
And maybe that botched backhand service return with Lopez serving at 4-5, 0-30 in the first set was worthy of comment, seeing as how it ultimately helped Lopez survive a game that lasted 12-minutes and 49 seconds and featured three missed set points by Federer. But anyway. . .
This one was an old-school hard-court battle, ultimately decided for Federer, 7-5, 6-3. But it didn't come all that easily. The Dubai court is quick, and that guaranteed that the lefty Lopez, who has a quality serve and an excellent volley, would be in with a shot despite an 0-9 record against Federer.
It proved true: Lopez's first serve was often devastating; he won a shade under 80 percent of his first-serve points, and in the first half of the second set he won 13 straight points. The problem for Lopez was that his first-serve conversion rate was just 50 percent. And while Lopez second-served himself out of trouble on a number of occasions, he won just 52 percent of those second delivery points.
By contrast, Federer hit that magical 70 percent first-serve conversion rate (it yielded a 92 percent success rate), and he managed to win an impressive 63 percent of his second-serve points. It helps explain why Lopez never did get a break point in the match, while Federer had five (although three were in that aforementioned 12-minute game, which Lopez held).
I cite those numbers because the faster the court, the more critical the serving stats become.
The great thing about this kind of tennis is that it usually features a clear, streamlined narrative. Each player holds with relative ease as the set reaches critical mass, and then one guy inevitably blinks—often after a subtle turn of plot. The turning point in this one occurred when Lopez, having survived that long game for 5-all, was blitzed in Federer's next service game and all too quickly found himself serving to stay in it once again.
Lopez didn't put a single first serve into play in that 12th game, and he lost the set when Federer pulled the trigger on a backhand return at 15-40, forcing Lopez to miss a forehand volley.
In the second set, the players exchanged holds until the eighth game, during which Lopez once again fell way behind, this time 0-40. He missed his next first serve, and mangled a forehand approach off Federer's ensuing service return. Federer then served it out without losing a point.
Federer played very well, which made the fawning over him a little more acceptable. Still, Lopez teed it up for The Mighty Fed at critical junctures, which helps explain why he left the court 0-10. I think it's great that commentators are true fans of the game and players, at least until their fawning leaves no room for insightful analysis.
In what would be the final game of the first set, Lopez, down 0-15, hit a great second-serve winner, prompting one of the commentators to cry out, "Gosh! I'm surprised Federer isn't challenging that one!"
A replay showed that the serve was good.
—Pete Bodo