Topic: Sampras: I see no decline with Federer

[swish]

It's hard to call Fed defensive with that forehand he has, that wing alone shows aggression by how he hits it.
 
At times Fed will just get the ball back but usually from an unfavorable court position.
 
Sampras isn't really wrong, Fed's doing very well still but is a bit slower.
The last 6-8 months he's actually looking better than the previous year or year and a half.

[monstertruck]

Agreed.
Tough to call him 'a defensive baseliner' when he has and uses a variety of weapons including the FH.

[Start da Game]

tough to call him an aggressive player as well.......even nadal and djokovic have the ability to stay aggressive against lesser ranked players.......when they are up against each other, that's when i called them defensive.......

[williamchung7]

Federer is not decline? It is joke if you compare Federer in 2003-2007 and Federer in 2008-2012. His forehand speed is dropped dramatically. His reflex and speed also drop. His power and speed is decline indeed. The things are being improve is his skills, for example backhand and variety of other different types of shots.
So really, I am confused what does  “no decline” mean in many comments? Decline for athlete or decline as tennis player?  Maybe what did Sampras mean in his statement maybe is his body is physically decline, but improvement of his skills keep him wining other young players. As the competitor in tennis world, he is not decline.

[monstertruck]

I'd love to see the numbers on that.
FH speed, foot speed etc.
I think what's happened is the competition caught up and passed him.
Purely subjective on my part.

[swish]

Sampras is probably talking about his tennis in general.
He likes both Fed and Annacone so I wouldn't expect him to say much else if asked about Fed.
 
The courts make a difference as a court like at the WTF suits his game so changes in the courts can make a difference too.
 
Whatever though, when's the next slam coming?
 
 

[mav140]

I'd love to see the numbers on that.
FH speed, foot speed etc.
I think what's happened is the competition caught up and passed him.
Purely subjective on my part.

You can't expect to really maintain your focus for over a decade, keep your motivation 100%, not to mention your movement, speed and reflexes.. They are elite athletes, however, they are still human... Are you going to tell me that you are as fast as you were 23-25.. Put it this way, when I was 23-25 I could easily go out Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday, get hammered every of those days, wake up with just a bit of a hung over and start drinking and partying again.. At my age I sure as hell can't do that anymore, I go out, drink just a bit and next morning my head is just spinning and I just want to go to sleep or relax in the leaving room... To say that Fed is still intact and exactly with the same quickness, reflexes, motivation and focus than when he was winning 3 Slams a year is just ridiculous... You always lose something along the way, even elite players.
IMHO Fed has improved in some ways, (serve, dropshots, etc.) as well, but he is not the same player than he was in 2004... No that hungry anymore to be the best in the history of tennis... he already is (at least from most TV celebrities, pro players, etc.) he has nothing to prove now, and you are telling me that he still is hungry for titles? I think he is hungrier for publicity, media coverage, than he is of what made him the 16 GS winner.
So, bottom line: Djokovic / Nadal have risen the standards. For sure! specially Djokovic.. they are playing great... But Fed is not the same guy we used to watch several years ago.. And don't get me wrong, I do like this Federer, and I still love to watch him play.. but he doesn't have that same "magic" he once had..
Ask Dallas, I am sure she would agree with me.

[monstertruck]

I'd love to see the numbers on that.
FH speed, foot speed etc.
I think what's happened is the competition caught up and passed him.
Purely subjective on my part.

You can't expect to really maintain your focus for over a decade, keep your motivation 100%, not to mention your movement, speed and reflexes.. They are elite athletes, however, they are still human... Are you going to tell me that you are as fast as you were 23-25.. Put it this way, when I was 23-25 I could easily go out Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday, get hammered every of those days, wake up with just a bit of a hung over and start drinking and partying again.. At my age I sure as hell can't do that anymore, I go out, drink just a bit and next morning my head is just spinning and I just want to go to sleep or relax in the leaving room... To say that Fed is still intact and exactly with the same quickness, reflexes, motivation and focus than when he was winning 3 Slams a year is just ridiculous... You always lose something along the way, even elite players.
IMHO Fed has improved in some ways, (serve, dropshots, etc.) as well, but he is not the same player than he was in 2004... No that hungry anymore to be the best in the history of tennis... he already is (at least from most TV celebrities, pro players, etc.) he has nothing to prove now, and you are telling me that he still is hungry for titles? I think he is hungrier for publicity, media coverage, than he is of what made him the 16 GS winner.
So, bottom line: Djokovic / Nadal have risen the standards. For sure! specially Djokovic.. they are playing great... But Fed is not the same guy we used to watch several years ago.. And don't get me wrong, I do like this Federer, and I still love to watch him play.. but he doesn't have that same "magic" he once had..
Ask Dallas, I am sure she would agree with me.

Apparently you aren't 'practicing' enough then.

I believe elite athletes or anyone for that matter can actually improve over a 2 decade span.  The fact that the "magic" is could be attributed to other factors other than an alleged decline in physical abilities. 
Drop in confidence-  he's said it himself.
2 main rivals playing better-  everyone knows that.
The remainder of the field realizing he is beatable occasionally-  ayuh!
Physical decline-  like I said, I'd love to see the numbers that back up this opinion.

Cheers Mav.
I'll be 'practicing' next week while on a fishing vacation in the Promised Land.

[Start da Game]

26 year old kamke was made to look like a 35 year old in comparison yesterday.......i just don't get what peak movement of fed that fedtards miss these days.......fed looked very beatable in 2005, 2006.......particularly on clay.......

[mav140]

I'd love to see the numbers on that.
FH speed, foot speed etc.
I think what's happened is the competition caught up and passed him.
Purely subjective on my part.

You can't expect to really maintain your focus for over a decade, keep your motivation 100%, not to mention your movement, speed and reflexes.. They are elite athletes, however, they are still human... Are you going to tell me that you are as fast as you were 23-25.. Put it this way, when I was 23-25 I could easily go out Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday, get hammered every of those days, wake up with just a bit of a hung over and start drinking and partying again.. At my age I sure as hell can't do that anymore, I go out, drink just a bit and next morning my head is just spinning and I just want to go to sleep or relax in the leaving room... To say that Fed is still intact and exactly with the same quickness, reflexes, motivation and focus than when he was winning 3 Slams a year is just ridiculous... You always lose something along the way, even elite players.
IMHO Fed has improved in some ways, (serve, dropshots, etc.) as well, but he is not the same player than he was in 2004... No that hungry anymore to be the best in the history of tennis... he already is (at least from most TV celebrities, pro players, etc.) he has nothing to prove now, and you are telling me that he still is hungry for titles? I think he is hungrier for publicity, media coverage, than he is of what made him the 16 GS winner.
So, bottom line: Djokovic / Nadal have risen the standards. For sure! specially Djokovic.. they are playing great... But Fed is not the same guy we used to watch several years ago.. And don't get me wrong, I do like this Federer, and I still love to watch him play.. but he doesn't have that same "magic" he once had..
Ask Dallas, I am sure she would agree with me.

Apparently you aren't 'practicing' enough then.

I believe elite athletes or anyone for that matter can actually improve over a 2 decade span.  The fact that the "magic" is could be attributed to other factors other than an alleged decline in physical abilities. 
Drop in confidence-  he's said it himself.
2 main rivals playing better-  everyone knows that.
The remainder of the field realizing he is beatable occasionally-  ayuh!
Physical decline-  like I said, I'd love to see the numbers that back up this opinion.

Cheers Mav.
I'll be 'practicing' next week while on a fishing vacation in the Promised Land.

LOL... I will have to start practicing then!
Yeah, I do agree with your points..
Djokovic and Nadal are playing a hell of a tennis...
But let me do a comparison (and should only be taken from this point of view and no other dicussion to start).
Let's talk about Michael Schummacher.. He is one hell of a pilot.. even if he doesn't have a winning car, he has lost "the edge", he lost his "aggresivness" in driving.. he is pushing down the brakes way before that when he did when he was a younger driver.. that translates on being a bit more conservative, on losing some of his confidence and on not being able to "eat the world" as he did when he was in his 20s. You lose things when you get older and older, you become more conservative, you become a bit more aware of the "dangers" of driving at 200 mph. that translates on not being as confident as you once were. It's nature... Look at Djokovic, he has all his confidence right now and is not concerned (he doesn't have to) hitting the ball down the line from every angle, his mentality is at the right place and is confident enough to make that shot, you lose that "mentality" when you get older...

[monstertruck]

I'd love to see the numbers on that.
FH speed, foot speed etc.
I think what's happened is the competition caught up and passed him.
Purely subjective on my part.

You can't expect to really maintain your focus for over a decade, keep your motivation 100%, not to mention your movement, speed and reflexes.. They are elite athletes, however, they are still human... Are you going to tell me that you are as fast as you were 23-25.. Put it this way, when I was 23-25 I could easily go out Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday, get hammered every of those days, wake up with just a bit of a hung over and start drinking and partying again.. At my age I sure as hell can't do that anymore, I go out, drink just a bit and next morning my head is just spinning and I just want to go to sleep or relax in the leaving room... To say that Fed is still intact and exactly with the same quickness, reflexes, motivation and focus than when he was winning 3 Slams a year is just ridiculous... You always lose something along the way, even elite players.
IMHO Fed has improved in some ways, (serve, dropshots, etc.) as well, but he is not the same player than he was in 2004... No that hungry anymore to be the best in the history of tennis... he already is (at least from most TV celebrities, pro players, etc.) he has nothing to prove now, and you are telling me that he still is hungry for titles? I think he is hungrier for publicity, media coverage, than he is of what made him the 16 GS winner.
So, bottom line: Djokovic / Nadal have risen the standards. For sure! specially Djokovic.. they are playing great... But Fed is not the same guy we used to watch several years ago.. And don't get me wrong, I do like this Federer, and I still love to watch him play.. but he doesn't have that same "magic" he once had..
Ask Dallas, I am sure she would agree with me.

Apparently you aren't 'practicing' enough then.

I believe elite athletes or anyone for that matter can actually improve over a 2 decade span.  The fact that the "magic" is could be attributed to other factors other than an alleged decline in physical abilities. 
Drop in confidence-  he's said it himself.
2 main rivals playing better-  everyone knows that.
The remainder of the field realizing he is beatable occasionally-  ayuh!
Physical decline-  like I said, I'd love to see the numbers that back up this opinion.

Cheers Mav.
I'll be 'practicing' next week while on a fishing vacation in the Promised Land.

LOL... I will have to start practicing then!
Yeah, I do agree with your points..
Djokovic and Nadal are playing a hell of a tennis...
But let me do a comparison (and should only be taken from this point of view and no other dicussion to start).
Let's talk about Michael Schummacher.. He is one hell of a pilot.. even if he doesn't have a winning car, he has lost "the edge", he lost his "aggresivness" in driving.. he is pushing down the brakes way before that when he did when he was a younger driver.. that translates on being a bit more conservative, on losing some of his confidence and on not being able to "eat the world" as he did when he was in his 20s. You lose things when you get older and older, you become more conservative, you become a bit more aware of the "dangers" of driving at 200 mph. that translates on not being as confident as you once were. It's nature... Look at Djokovic, he has all his confidence right now and is not concerned (he doesn't have to) hitting the ball down the line from every angle, his mentality is at the right place and is confident enough to make that shot, you lose that "mentality" when you get older...

Yeah, he may be losing time technically, and like I said, I'd like to see the measurements.

Could the loss of 'fearlessness' of youth be a wash with the gains offered due to maturity?  Interesting stuff for sure MavMan!

I still see Fed as a contender for the slams though no longer the fav.
The factors contributing to this scenario are fun to discuss but have no real import to me as a player fan, because I don't much care for any of the top 3.  I just like to watch good, all-court tennis.

[Dallas]

Pete was a more introvert person, whereas Roger thrives on "people"...he says he loves the travel, and all the work.  Even Roddick mentioned this when he was with Roger last year - how Roger took an entire day for the press stuff and how patient Roger was with the press and everyone.  Roddick said he had to shake his head at how Roger handled all that stuff.

Personally - I marvel at how well Roger has kept up his game throughout all these years.  Remember, he came on the scene (professionally) in 1998.  That's a long time to be around. And yet, he has adapted his game to each change that has come up.  Remember - he use to S&V just about all the time.  He has stayed strong throughout all these 'years' of changes in the game and still is in the top 3.  I think Roger would have been a great player no matter what decade he played in - whether in the Laver, Borg, or whoever else's time...Roger would have still been up there with the top players because he's a great tennis player.

I will say that personally I enjoyed his tennis better from 2004-2007 - simply because he was winning just about everything! But I'm happy that Roger is still in the 'mix' today at almost 31 years old. 

[monstertruck]

Great athletes thrive on adversity and find a way to succeed no matter what era they are in.

[mav140]

Yeah, for sure it would be interesting to know how maturity has kept Roger competitive vs what he has lost today..

Bottom line, I just have to say that I still enjoy watching his matches and how Djokovic and Nadal had to raise their level to be on top of this Roger...

I guess this is just a healthy discussion and am glad he can continue to play the way he is.
Probably I will be able to see him live before he retires.. Although it will have to be next year tops... Have to save up some money..

Sent from my LG-P990 using Tapatalk 2

[monstertruck]

Best wishes for seeing Fed (or any of the top 50!) live over the next years!

Pro tennis is so vastly different from the game that most of us hackers play that it's hilarious we even try to use the same gear or mimic the strokes. 

Sent from my 8 year old PC just days before an intense 'practice week'.

[Alex]

well, you all have some good points here. Mav is right, I remember going to the bars here, getting smashed after few drinks, going home, sleeping for 2 hours, waking up and going to work and hey I was fine. nowadays, I can't even imagine anything like that  ... although, If Nole wins RG this year I'm going to get so wasted 

Fed, at his  'tennis' age is doing great 

[monstertruck]

Obviously you're out of shape as well Alex!
Not enough practice.

[Start da Game]

Pete was a more introvert person, whereas Roger thrives on "people"...he says he loves the travel, and all the work.  Even Roddick mentioned this when he was with Roger last year - how Roger took an entire day for the press stuff and how patient Roger was with the press and everyone.  Roddick said he had to shake his head at how Roger handled all that stuff.

Personally - I marvel at how well Roger has kept up his game throughout all these years.  Remember, he came on the scene (professionally) in 1998.  That's a long time to be around. And yet, he has adapted his game to each change that has come up.  Remember - he use to S&V just about all the time.  He has stayed strong throughout all these 'years' of changes in the game and still is in the top 3.  I think Roger would have been a great player no matter what decade he played in - whether in the Laver, Borg, or whoever else's time...Roger would have still been up there with the top players because he's a great tennis player.

I will say that personally I enjoyed his tennis better from 2004-2007 - simply because he was winning just about everything! But I'm happy that Roger is still in the 'mix' today at almost 31 years old. 

pete just din't care about anything but his tennis.......we could say he was probably disinterested in all that stuff.......i don't think he was an introvert.......to me actually fed comes off as a sensitive and introvert type.......doing the press and stuff is not really a measure of extrovert attitude here i think......

sampras asked out a lot of girls, slept with more than one woman but fed just kept himself content with miroslava.......that should also tell us a bit about who was more outgoing.......you could argue the same about rafa but he's always hanging out with friends and appears to be more outgoing and more energetic.......federer is more reserved in comparison.......



 

[monstertruck]

Pete was a more introvert person, whereas Roger thrives on "people"...he says he loves the travel, and all the work.  Even Roddick mentioned this when he was with Roger last year - how Roger took an entire day for the press stuff and how patient Roger was with the press and everyone.  Roddick said he had to shake his head at how Roger handled all that stuff.

Personally - I marvel at how well Roger has kept up his game throughout all these years.  Remember, he came on the scene (professionally) in 1998.  That's a long time to be around. And yet, he has adapted his game to each change that has come up.  Remember - he use to S&V just about all the time.  He has stayed strong throughout all these 'years' of changes in the game and still is in the top 3.  I think Roger would have been a great player no matter what decade he played in - whether in the Laver, Borg, or whoever else's time...Roger would have still been up there with the top players because he's a great tennis player.

I will say that personally I enjoyed his tennis better from 2004-2007 - simply because he was winning just about everything! But I'm happy that Roger is still in the 'mix' today at almost 31 years old. 

pete just din't care about anything but his tennis.......we could say he was probably disinterested in all that stuff.......i don't think he was an introvert.......to me actually fed comes off as a sensitive and introvert type.......doing the press and stuff is not really a measure of extrovert attitude here i think......

sampras asked out a lot of girls, slept with more than one woman but fed just kept himself content with miroslava.......that should also tell us a bit about who was more outgoing.......you could argue the same about rafa but he's always hanging out with friends and appears to be more outgoing and more energetic.......federer is more reserved in comparison.......

Agreed.

[mav140]

I agree... although I have to say that Rafa in my opinion is not so outgoing.. he is really shy and doesn't strike me as outgoing, but his humbleness and his "easy going" type of person makes him friends everywhere he goes.. But it strikes me that people come to him instead of the other way around and the fact that he hangs around friends just mean that he is a good person and friend and people like to be around him, but not exactly because he is the life of the party...


Fed is a family man.. he likes the spot light but he has always been very private about his life, he strikes me as a person who is nice to have around but by no means is he the life of the party, just a regular (with millions on his bank account) guy who prefers a quiet life outside the spotlight and court..