What Does His Wimbledon Loss Mean For Federer? | Thebigtip

There's no doubt this is a difficult loss to digest for Roger Federer and his fans. Federer's game has come crashing down to earth following his success at the Australian Open, with zero titles and strange losses. If it weren't for that lone Slam, well, you can only imagine what the critics would be saying. Thankfully, Federer gave us some of his best ever tennis in Melbourne which makes it all the more confusing that he has failed to find anywhere near that kind of level since. With disappointing losses in the American hard-court swing and an average clay-court season in which his semi-finals streak was broken, Federer has fallen in the quarters at the tournament he loves most.

What does this mean for Federer and his fans? I can only hazard a few guesses.

1. Federer hasn't lost his dominance now, he lost that long ago: Despite his obvious triumphs since, I believe 2008 was the end of the reign of Federer. By reign I mean three Slams a year whilst winning Masters titles left right and centre. He didn't win a single Masters in 2008 and won only one Slam. They aren't shocking results, but they were nowhere near 2007s. 2009 saw one of Federer's best years in claiming the French Open and Wimbledon, but he still wasn't exactly dominant. He won two Masters titles and lost two five setters in Slam finals. Excellent results, but clearly the days of Federer being the one and only on anything but clay were over. The same  goes this year; the Australian Open was a marvelous victory but how much more can we expect? Federer isn't the same player he was three years ago, but that's ok. There is no need to hit the panic button. The Federer decline isn't going to be sudden and shocking, instead it's been a slow slide that started three years ago and four Slams back.

2. Tennis is changing: The new crop of tennis players are taller and more powerful. Unlike most, though, I don't believe this spells the end for Federer. These one-dimensional players, the likes of Tomas Berdych, Juan Martin del Potro, and Robin Soderling, may be able to hit through the likes of Federer, Novak Djokovic, and Rafael Nadal of late, but you can bet your left leg this won't always be the case. Variety is always going to be an advantage and the ability to adapt and change your game will always be the key to being a top, dominant player. Federer may be struggling with these kinds of players at the moment, but he will have those tournaments where he plays with too much variety for any of them. It may have sounded harsh when he said the big hitters aren't going to reinvent themselves in a year, but it's true. Tennis may be changing but there will always be those players that are special in that they set themselves apart from the field. Federer, Nadal, and possibly Djokovic are those players.

3. Motivation may have been an issue before, but not now: Federer was scarily calm after his quarter-final loss at Roland Garros. He was relaxed and joking in his press conference, seemingly un-worried about the state of his game. Flash forward to Wimbledon and the headlines come criticising Federer for his surliness and ungraciousness in losing. You know what though? That's a good thing. Federer spoke of not being able to wait for next year's Roland Garros and Wimbledon, and said he was looking forward to 'attacking' at the US Open. This loss could be a wake-up call for the Swiss who may have been just a little content with his 16 Slams this year.