Nadal clearly No. 1, but what happened to Federer?

Rafael Nadal rolls into the U.S. Open as the world's newest top-ranked player, but much of the pre-tournament conversation and lingering disbelief surrounds Roger Federer , the man Nadal has displaced.

[Dave]

People keep mentioning his Mono as only a footnote and suggesting that Federer should be over it now. The issue is not just whether he is still sick, by all accounts he's not. But his entire regime was thrown off for the year, and this year was a busy one to begin with. He did not really have a functional off season or time to practice at length or improve his fitness. Also, because he lost early in the year (yes, at least partially because of the Mono) he has lost confidence. What he needs more than anything, is a little time off. I'm not saying that he doesn't need to continue to improve his game, but to suggest that he really has fallen so quickly is, I think, erroneous.

[Dan Scarlett]

Fedserer has not lost his forehand, or his serve...but something even more precious to him--his sense of superiority. Here is a stunning comment from The Guardian"
"Federer's considerable mental strength is, essentially, manufactured---Nadal's comes naturally." !

[kricke20]

"...hired Jose Higueras for a few months, then parted with him, too..."
Jose Higueras is with Roger Federer at the US Open 2008.

[Ariel]

Federer is seems out of shape and bloated.

[maria gilda montilla]

Federer is undergoing some psychological problems, so much so that it has afftected his game performance. He has lost his invincibility and his confidence in court, more so to Nadal than to anyone else. If he cant lick this, then it would be downhill for him from this time on, plus the fact that he is not getting any younger. I hate to see him like this, i pity him when he loses, and he loses so badly emotionally, you can see his shoulders sagging, his face about to cry, he in near to tears, and it's really very sad to see this from a great champion! But, that is how it is. When he took the torch from Sampras, I felt the same pity for Sampras too, and I knew that one day this cocky conqueror of Sampras would get it too. And, now I see it! Nadal is his nemesis! his achilles heel! He should be thankful that he is losing to a great humble nice guy like Nadal, and not to that arrogant and insulting Serb Djokovic!

[AKK]

Most writers imply that Federer's bout with mono was a passing phase.
I disagree. While Federer may appear fully fit, mono is indeed the main reason why he goes from being sublime and untouchable one day to being lackluster and error-prone the next. The question is not whether Federer still has the game that made him one of the greatest ever, but which Federer will show up on the court any given day.
True, Nadal has greatly improved his game, but to suggest that Federer's slump is unrelated to his battles with mono is to overlook the obvious.

[Betty]

"He fired Tony Roche as his coach, hired Jose Higueras for a few months, then parted with him, too." Please check your facts. Higueras is spending time right now with Federer on the practice courts of Flushing Meadows.

"He's been snappish in some post-defeat news conferences, in denial in others." Did you say he's snappish 'cos he's been known recently to be less indulgent with certain members of the press (e.g. those who keep asking him whether he'd go the same route as Henin)? Did you say he's in denial 'cos he refused to agree with some journalists that he's finished?

Interesting too that you should use the expression "post-defeat" news conferences. Is that what they call "post-match" press conferences these days?

If Federer wasn't even capable of showing some arrogance when asked stupid questions by members of the press, he probably wouldn't be able to show any arrogance on the tennis court. If that happens, I'd be really worried.

[Springfield Va]

Another example of two tennis players dealing with the ups and downs against each other is Martina and Chrissie. Read Ms Howard's book "The Rivals" (No I am not her agent or relative) on how each other affected/influenced the other's play.

[Sam Boney]

I remember the first time I watched Nadal - it was on clay- and thinking to myself - "This kid is going to be unstoppable in a few years, on any surface..."
It was just a matter of time.

[Federal Express]

It is interesting how fast people like to identify with the winner and just ignore or put down the loser.

Some of the comments i read about Nadal, about how they know way before that Nadal would be a great player smacks near to being absolutely pretencious. Hindsight is always 100%.

Sam, tell us who do u think will take over Nadal. Or do you wait for him to appear and then tell us that you knew all along that that guy will take over Nadal and it was just a matter of time.

[A WAD]

Federal Express wrote:

It is interesting how fast people like to identify with the winner and just ignore or put down the loser.
Some of the comments i read about Nadal, about how they know way before that Nadal would be a great player smacks near to being absolutely pretencious. Hindsight is always 100%.
Sam, tell us who do u think will take over Nadal. Or do you wait for him to appear and then tell us that you knew all along that that guy will take over Nadal and it was just a matter of time.

You're dumb. How the hell can I predict who will take over Nadal? I am not Nostradamus. I just knew by watching the quality of his play that he was going to be a top seed. No one was playing with that kind of intensity at that age. I felt the same way about Sampras and Agassi.
Now I have wasted enough time on a brickhead like you.