The Stars of Roland Garros: Roger Federer and Robin Soderling
64For me, there were two stars of Roland Garros in 2009.
Before the tournament, and before the clay court season, I was suspicious of Rafael Nadal's form and predicted an upset was on the cards. After the semi-final in Madrid against Novak Djokovic, and the subsequent loss to Federer, I thought that was it.
Admittedly I was expecting a lot from Andy Murray, who'd performed well throughout the year to date. Before the first match, I'd already imagined him in the final.
I never thought for one second it would be Robin Soderling who finally ended Rafa's reign in Paris. This feat alone took him from a player I'd already admired as a workhorse tour performer to a household name.
Elsewhere at Roland Garros, Spain's new star Verdasco faced Davydenko, who struggled and was defeated. Defeated badly at that. But along comes Soderling, fresh from the Nadal win and with much increased attention on his shoulders, and takes down Davydenko for a position a stones throw from the final.
Sure enough, Gonzalez stood in his way, and it provided a fantastic semi-final match. I thought Gonzalez actually played really well in this match, but it still wasn't enough to stop this new Swedish Express charging through. Fernando seemed too distracted at times and maybe this seemingly constant break in concentration added significantly to his downfall.
Meanwhile, Federer was carefully plotting his way to the final, and careful he needed to be. Knowing Nadal was out of the tournament would have undoubtedly altered his senses and played tricks with his mind. In a way, the major obstacle was out of the way, but the pressure and expectation now raised it's own hurdle.
Federer gave a great performance in New York last year, 2008, to defeat Igor Andreev in five sets. More attention than normal was placed on Federer after the Wimbledon loss, so this was a key tournament. Had Roger recovered from losing the Wimbledon crown? This next Grand Slam was surely the place to prove he still had the tools to get the job done.
Andreev was outstanding in the match, and, like the Del Potro semi-final, Federer seemed to be under pressure throughout. Some say the great players can play the big points better than their opponents. Some say great players can serve themselves out of trouble. Maybe Federer does have these qualities, but in both matches he seemed to find the slightest of edges to take the lead. With the Del Potro match you sensed he'd shifted momentum to win a set, only to see him lamely drop his opening serve of the following set. He was almost out of sorts - sometimes serving himself out of trouble but never relying on himself to do so. It was almost like he was drawing on a number of under-threat shots and tactics to find that edge.
It was almost miraculous that he won considering the level Del Potro maintained throughout the match. Miracle or not though, Federer was in the final.
In the graciousness of his defeat, Del Potro told Federer that everyone was behind him, that they wanted him to take the title he'd coveted for so long. A title, every knew, would complete his career.
But there was Soderling of course, who'd run into a rich vein of form at this tournament and was determined not to stop at the final. The first Grand Slam that he'd past the fourth round. A momentous occasion.
The match started in similar fashion to Federer v Nadal at Wimbledon in 2006. Federer suspecting his opponent being nervous, on new territory, new pressure. Federer knows to strike hard and quickly at the start of such matches, and he obliged. 6-1 in under 25 minutes.
Soderling though, took time to gain composure and started to relax. The shot making came back and the second set was a completely different story. Federer though, in the ascendency, took the set in a tie break.
Nobody really felt like counting Soderling out, even at this point. Against Nadal, commentators and fans were awaiting the drop in form which would allow Rafa to strike and turn, easing to the win in his usual style. But this of course never happened, the turn never came, and Soderling almost coasted to the end. Would this happen from the third set in the final?
It wasn't to be. In a shower soaked arena, the heavy burden of this first Grand Slam final was too much for Soderling. He was pitting his wits against a player he'd admitted was the greatest to play the game, the greatest in history, even his own most feared opponent.
There was a wobble in the final game as Federer served out the match, but as Soderling's backhand return took an age to hit the net, the career was complete.
