Roger Federer races from record to record. But even after returning to the top of the world rankings, the Maestro from Switzerland is not running out of goals.
When Monday’s return to the tennis throne was officially perfect on Monday, the hymns of praise for the new number 1 were far from over. In the domestic part of Switzerland, in the far-away part of South Korea, the sports family paid homage to one of its most popular members all over the world. Roger Federer himself enjoyed the next “milestone” of his unique career on the fourth day in a row.
The semi-finals in Rotterdam had already cleared Federer’s way back to the top on Friday, where he “belongs”not only in the eyes of football world champion Mesut Özil. His 97th birthday. Tournament victory on Sunday’s ATP tour in the final over the Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov (6:2,6:2) crowned the next chapter of tennis history (Boris Becker), where Federer continues to write. This did not remain hidden in the Olympic Village of Pyeongchang.
For US ski star Lindsey Vonn, Federer was always number one anyway, even though winning the series was not so easy for the series winner. Despite his four Olympic gold medals, Dario Cologna left no doubt about the Swiss Confederates’ internal ranking:”Roger is bigger than I am,”said the cross-country skier. And Martina Hingis, once a role model for the young Federer himself, ennobled her compatriot as a “living lesson in sport”.
However, the superlatives for the insatiable Maestro threaten to go out with every further record, which sometimes leads to strange pictures. In its appraisal, the Swiss tabloid Blick Federer compared this to a yoghurt that “can be left in the refrigerator for years without any risk of being moldy,” and which “does not go mouldy, but rather becomes better and tastier every year.
Roger Federer sets the bar higher and higher in our sport,”said the American, who was the oldest player in first place at the age of 33 years and 131 days until Monday.
Federer turns 37 in summer – and still shows no signs of fatigue. The half-year break in the second half of the season 2016 gave him an unexpected momentum. Not even Federer himself had expected to add three new trophies to his Grand Slam collection in the twelve months after his comeback and add them to his 303rd Grand Slam collection. We are looking forward to starting the second week at the top of the world rankings.
But what goals remain for Federer? Enough, as he assures himself. Already this year he could break the magic mark of 100 tournament victories. And even the “eternal” record of the eternal Jimmy Connor (109) doesn’t seem to be unattainable for Federer anymore:”Nobody prepares as professionally for the game as he does,”Martina Hingis explained the secret behind Federer’s success – unlike any yogurt – as yet has no expiry date.