Top Ten Best Roger's Outfits

10. Indoor season 2010 – Real men wear pink lilac

Fashionwise, the indoor season has often been the worst period of the year, with too many dull, greyish and rather sad outfits. But not in 2010. Lilac was a great choice: it’s elegant and  it's a soft colour, so it kinda follows the tradition of avoiding bright colours during the indoor season, but it’s not boring, or dull, or cheerless, and it doesn’t make you look like someone who urgently needs a sunbath. Plus, in Shangai and partially in Basel, it created a nice camouflage effect with the court.

9. AO 2008 (day) – The grown up ballboy

A very nice shade of blue for the t-shirt and a pretty & unusual combination with the shorts. On top of all that, funnily enough he was perfectly coordinated with the ballboys, the umpires and the court itself.

8. Master 2010 – Not a WTF outfit

Likewise with blue, we have seen Federer in red very often (some would say too often). Between all of them, I have picked this one not only because Roger played an amazing tournament wearing it, but also because it’s a beautiful shade of red, bright and cheerful. Plus, the match with the dark grey shorts and jacket is very classy.

7. Montreal/Cincy 2009 – Isn’t daddy pretty?

Coming back to the tour as the happiest man alive, after the EPIC month of July 2009, Roger looked shiny in this bright blue/green. The outfit also included a beautiful sweat jacket with contrasting outlines, an item Federer sported during the entire year (causing in many fans worldwide the urge to buy them all).



6. US Open 2006 – Oh, those shoulders.

Probably the best-fitting t-shirt ever. During 2006 summer, Federer sported these collarless t-shirts, in a white version in Wimbledon (well, DUH!) and in Toronto/Cincy, and in this light blue version at the Us Open. While I’m not really sure about the usefulness of the little holes on the back, those lines on the shoulders are amazing, doing a great job emphasizing Roger’s figure. If only the shorts would have been a little less baggy…

5. Miami 2009 – Smashing rackets, but with class!

The semifinal v. Djokovic was one of Federer's worst matches ever (certainly one of his worst performances with his forehand), but the outfit was outstanding. Simple, classy and yet not ordinary, thanks in particular to the elegant outlines on the shirt collar. A similar design was used for RG 2009, but I liked this version’s colours best (tenniswise, I enjoyed RG more, though. Guess why?).

4. AO 2006 – Go green

I’m not totally fond of the t-shirt, but the main reason why I picked this outfit is the touches of colour, especially on the bandana and the wristbands. That + Roger’s eyes and tan + the night lights produced some of the most amazing pics ever, like these:

3. US Open 2005 - "cause you were all...yellow..."

The yellow bandana just looks INCREDIBLE. And the shirt is great, too. Love the pattern on the shoulders. The yellow/blue combo was awesome, too bad Nike has given up this path…although it seems like yellow will be back at the beginning of 2011.

 

2. US Open 2007 (night) - Darth Federer

Dan dan dan dan dan-da-da-dan dan-da-dan!!...ooops, sorry! I was just singing the Darth Federer Vader theme!

The thing with this outfit is that it was perfectly appropriate to the tournament. Wearing it anywhere else would have been – probably – too much, but for the night matches in Arthur Ashe it just looked perfect: outstanding, audacious, elegant and sexy.

1) Wimbledon 2006 –  The“He’s wearing a frikkin jacket??? On court???” outfit

Obviously, in every list like this one, positions will be always determined not only by objective standards, but also by subjective tastes, individual likes and personal memories.

To me – and I believe I’m not the only one – 2006 was the year of the “point of no return”, Rogerwise. Before then, I liked the guy and his tennis, I cheered for him, I would even be upset when he lost, but I was nowhere close to the condition of total craziness I’m in now. Then, in 2006, two things happened: in May, I sat through (live) to one of Roger’s bloodiest defeats ever (Rome 2006 final) and for the first time I felt totally involved emotionally with him; in June, he stepped on court in Wimbledon wearing a beautiful immaculate jacket and there I totally and definitively lost it for him, not only as a tennis player but as a person, too.

Besides that, I really think that it was a perfect outfit. The idea of the jacket was terrific: so classic and yet, nowadays, so original. It was eye-catching and everyone was talking about it, but it wasn’t overdone, it wasn’t too much (which was, on the contrary, the usual criticism towards Federer’s Wimbledon outfit in 2007). Of course, Roger is the only man on Earth who could pull it off; everyone else, standing on a tennis court with a pair of white shorts and a white jacket, would at least look like an idiot (or as an ice cream seller, if he’s lucky).  

   

 

Honourable mentions:

Clay 2005 & Cincy 2005: two other pretty reds

AO 2010 & US Open 2007 (day): pretty blues

Toronto/Cincy  2010: pink, it was love at first sight

Wimbledon 2008: you can love or hate the cardigan, but…the belt!!! Oooohh, the belt was love.
AO 2008 (night): Darth Federer reloaded, now with touches of blue.

So, in the Top 3 we have white, black and colours. Fair enough, what do you think?

Have your say and then stay tuned for a Top Ten of... (shock and horror)... Roger's worst outfits!

Some (Roger)things of 2010 I would like to keep and some others I would rather leave behind

Another long and intense season is over, and now it’s time to look behind to what happened during the year (RE: Roger Federer). It was a sort of a rollercoaster year for Fed and his supporters: it started up and ended in great fashion, with the amazing wins in Melbourne and London (and, what’s more important, with the out-of-this-world type of tennis he played in those two events), but what took place in the middle was…well, you know how it was.

However, there are lots of things to be remembered about this year…and others that I would not like to bring with us in 2011. Here’s a short and not comprehensive (I tried to mix it up a bit, including both “serious” and shallow matters) list.

Good stuff first:

1) Pride (In the Name of Love)

Truth is that, when I look back to this past year, the first thing that I think of it’s not how many trophies Fed (or anyone else on the ATP Tour, for what it matters) has lifted, but it’s his attitude in the last months (i.e. after Wimbledon). 2008 was the year of struggle, of the so-called regicide and of the many declaration of death of the “old” King; after that, 2009 was all about redemption, resurgence, happiness, GOATness and becoming reconciled and at peace with one self. Emotionally, I thought we had it all. I was wrong. In 2010, we had pride and love: the pride of a champion who, albeit having already everything both in his professional career and in his personal life, doesn’t want to step back and with great humbleness seeks for external help (BTW, I love you, Paul Annacone) and tries out new things; love…well, love for tennis is the reason behind all this, the primary source of all this motivation, eagerness and devotion. The same motivation some “tennis expert” keep questioning all the time (as a matter of fact, I thought of titling this paragraph “Pride and Prejudice”, but then I decided that U2 were far more appropriate…plus, probably Jane Austen wouldn’t have approved to be linked to such “writers” and “journalists”). However, who cares about them? Roger Federer has showed, once again, that no one plays tennis better than him, and no one loves the sport more than him.

2) I have to play aggressive, no?

Yes, I am quoting a Rafa catchline, but only because it fits pretty well to describe what happened with Roger’s game in the last six months.

In the past few years, one of the most recurring topic in tennis world was Federer’s aggression on court and – let’s say it – the issue was often approached rather superficially: every now and then, everyone liked to drop sentences like “Federer should be more aggressive”, “he should come to the net more”, like it was some sort of magical solution to every problem. Truth is that things are a lot more complicated than that. In contemporary tennis, aggression is often a dangerous path. It must be a very “well thinked” and “reasonable” aggression, otherwise it can turn into humiliation. Federer’s possibility and capacity of aggression depend first of all on his physical condition and, mentally, from his confidence in his game. For long periods, both of those were just gone, together with Roger’s ability to take the ball early, which is the core of aggression in his game. In the second part of 2010, he rebuilt this type of play, grounding it on those elements and changing many things, especially on the two strokes that start the point: the serve (see point 5 of this list) and the return (raise your hand if you’re loving the aggressive backhand return finally hit with topspin! *raises her hand*).

Obviously, we can’t really say what’s the actual part of Paul Annacone in all this process, but I’ll just say I’m happy he is there.

3) Sunday the 7^th of November, 2010

It was a day just like any other, then this happened:

(so much for not caring about the non-Slam tournaments)

and this, too:

Federfans all over the world were holding back tears.

4) Backhand lovefests

The two most important victories of 2010 have something in common: they both featured an incredible display of perfect backhands. In the last acts of the Australian Open and of the WTF, Federer faced Murray and Nadal: the two players who, among all the ATP pros, can trouble him more on the left diagonal. But not this time. In both matches, Roger’s backhand was rock solid, and not only he didn’t get in trouble when the rallies were mainly on that side of the court, but – on the contrary – he often turned the situation to his advantage.

In Australia, he outplayed Murray at the Scot’s favourite game, the tactics. I lost count of how many times he executed flawlessly the “crosscourt backhand followed by a down-the-line backhand” combination (minute 1:35)

In London, Federer’s usual struggles with his one-handed bh on Nadal supervamostopspin forehands looked like a vague memory, when we saw him jumping on those kind of balls and hitting shots like this.


5) Saint Serve

Everyone knows how important is it for Federer (and how it will get more and more important with the years) to hold his serve easily e to get some “free” points directly with this shot. Conscious of this, and finally free from the back problems of the last couple of years, Roger worked a lot on his serve: he modified a bit his movement, he took more risks with his second serve and he improved his wide serve from the deuce court, which was absolutely lethal during the indoor season.

When he serves that well, the world suddenly seems a better place.

6) Pink, it was love at first sight

In a year during which we witnessed every kind of fashion horrors (Nadal and Venus, plus the “usual suspects” Stepanek and Rezai, just to name a few), one can only appreciate Nike’s efforts to try something new and more original, though still classic, for Roger. Personally, I loved all of them: the pink, the lilac and the orange. Judging by the previews of the AO outfit, it looks like we will get more of these in 2011.

7) Hit 4 Haiti (not the awkward one)

In many ways, it was the best promotional image for tennis: the best players all on one court, being silly and not taking themselves seriously + charity + a great crowd. It was good fun to watch. Oh, did I mention that the whole thing was born from an idea of Roger “the great humanitarian” Federer? Pity that in Indian Wells things didn’t turn out as pretty as in Australia.

Now, happy after recalling all the nice memories, let’s go down the “scary” part. I’m sorry, but we have to do it, we have to exorcise these demons and…oh, whatever, I just need to rant about a few things and take them out of my system!

1) Just win this ONE f***ing point!

Roger, I love you, but FOUR matches in a year lost after having match point? Seriously? I would even quote JMac and his famous “you cannot be serious”, if it wasn’t the most overused line in tennis.

I’ll just say three words: MAKE. IT. STOP. *evil glare* And when I say evil glare I mean Maria Sharapova-like evil glare. (btw, I have no idea of who made this gif, but full credit to him/her, and thanks! It's awesome!).

2) Forehand dropshot

Maybe it’s just me, but several times during this year I found myself shouting at the TV because of this new mania of Roger: when he has a nice and “easy” ball in his half court, which is just waiting for him to hammer it with his “kaboom” forehand (usually down the line) from that position, he chooses instead to use some sort of forehand dropshot. Although I was delighted when in 2009 Roger finally discovered the existence of the dropshot, well…I would appreciate a more – let’s say – sparing use of this particular kind of it.

Probably I was not very clear, so here there are a few exhibits of what I’m talking about
A) beginning of the year (jump to minute 4:02). Yes, it was a fraking Grand Slam C’ship point.
B) half way trough the year (minute 8:30) 
C) final part of the year (minute 13:30). I love the commentator’s reaction, by the way. I’m sure a very similar sound came out of my mouth, too. (Together with a lot of swear words, of course.)

3) And the Award goes to…

Ok, maybe this one is not really about Federer, but rather about WHO won the award in his place.

I’m talking about the Stefan Edberg Sportmanship Award. ‘Nuff said.

4) Trophy lifting

No, I’m not talking about this year’s ratio between finals played and victories (although that might have deserved a place in this list too), but about Roger’s actual technique in lifting trophies. One thinks that, after having done it 66 times, he should be pretty good at it, but already since last year I noticed some flaws in this particular art:

I thought maybe it was just because it was a first time with that particular trophy, but then it happened again this year:

(lifting the trophy and the koala at the same time??? LOL!)

(take it from the bottom, Roger, from the bottom!).

Let’s hope next year he will have a lot more occasions to improve his technique.

5) Don’t win the game don’t win the game…Alejandro…

I’ve seen things you people wouldn’t believe: attack ships on fire off the shoulder of Orion, ALEJANDRO FALLA SERVING FOR THE MATCH AGAINST FEDERER IN WIMBLEDON.

Geez, that was creepy and disturbing and shocking and heart-stopping (not in a pleasant way), beyond any imagination. Months later, thinking back to that match you can still feel that kind of “end of the world” feeling.

6) Breathe in breathe out.

This is what I often keep telling to myself during particularly tense moments of a match, but in this case I’m referring to Federer’s lung infection in February. Obviously that wasn’t the only reason of his poor performances in the spring, but it surely affected him, messing up with his preparation and stopping him from carrying on the momentum from the Australian Open.

The mono in 2008, the back problems in 2009 and this in 2010: it looks like that period of the year has become pretty unlucky for Roger. When February 2011 comes, please cross your fingers and say your prayers.

7) Ahahahahahahahahah, with Montanes? Really? Ahahahahahahah, funny....NOT.

Seriously, that was painful to watch, even if it was just a 250 event.  

HAPPY 2011 TO EVERYONE!!!

Welcome back, MAESTRO!

Roger Federer is a new player. The old Champion is still there, but he became, if it's possible, a better player out there, on court. Aggressive, smart, brave and finally persuaded to do right things at right moments. Not that he wasn't able before, but maybe when a player has so many weapons under his belt he needs someone that is able to simplify his game, using them to build variety and safe points at the same time: that "someone" is surely Mr Paul Annacone, that together with Severin Luthi was able to get the attention and the belief of a such champion.
We never saw a such performance from Roger Federer against his nemesis. Rafael Nadal always had to do two or three things when he played Federer: lefty-slice serve on his backhand, supervamostopspin forehands on his backhand, and the last forehand on the other side, when the court is finally open. But Rrrrrafa yesterday did understand very well from the beginning what was going on: Roger was hitting before, hitting earlier than ever. Crossed backhand as a winner, after THAT topspin; dowon-the-line backhand on Nadal's backhand and then, a huge forehand, in every side of the court. Smart play at the net and the killer serve: that slice that gave him tons of points.
Healthy, motivated, shiny Federer beat, in a week number 5, 4, 3 and 1 in the world. Losing just a set, in the final. All younger than him. That wasn't just  a case, it was a reinassance in style.


It's maybe too easy to express Lovestream today.
The day after a such victory and a such perfect week is pure joy, a ray of light that suddenly is entering from your window during a cloudy day.
That's why I want to say I'll never love this ray of light as much as that cloudy weather outside. I loved Roger Federer and his tennis much more after devastating day of pain and suffer, during days we're waiting for this joy. Because Roger is able to give you emotions and to make you feel thankful especially during bad days, weeks, months. You realize you're feeling too much love to blame suffering and hoping he's gonna be better, happier.
And the fact Roger did understand that to let us know he's aware made me cry. Even more than yesterday, when I watched that ball that was incredibly in, that backhand that finally got its revenge, that Lion inside of him feeling proud to have found the way and the brave to break the fear.
But I also know Roger gave us a lesson: a satisfied and winner Champion, after 12 years of pro-tennis, after have reached all he could reach, didn't give up. He didn't want to feel satisfied.
His heart, his ambition, gave him the humility to re-invent himself, to listen to new words, new people he trusts, new kinds of work; to reach many more goals. Making even better a tennis that is art, yet. This is a lesson I'll never forget.
Because we all were able to see the love he put to make it possible. To complete, once more, the dream was there since he was just a kid.
Because Roger is still a kid inside, and I'm so thankful for that. For still being that. Because in this new Roger's version on court both his sides are present: the maturity to understand something had to be fixed and restored through new people and ways to do that and the pure side in which he protects the passion he fully has for tennis and for everlasting dream.
I don't know if I can be prouder of Roger than today. But I know Roger can allow that, one day.

 
___________________________________________________________________________________

Roger Federer è un giocatore nuovo. Il campione di sempre è ancora lì, ma c'è un giocatore perfino migliore, se è possibile, adesso. Aggressivo, saggio, coraggioso e finalmente convinto di fare le cose giuste al momento giusto. Non che non ne fosse capace prima, ma probabilmente quando un giocatore ha così tante armi a disposizione ha bisogno di qualcuno che gli semplifichi le cose usando queste armi per costruire varietà e sicurezza al tempo stesso: questo qualcuno è certamente Paul Annacone, che insieme a Severin Luthi è stato capace di conquistarsi la fiducia di un tale campione.
Non avevamo mai visto una tale performance di Roger contro la sua nemesi: Rafael Nadal ha sempre dovuto fare due o tre cose semplici per lui per avere la meglio contro Roger. Servizio mancino sul suo rovescio, supervamostopspin di dritto contro il suo rovescio, e poi, quando finalmente il campo è aperto, il dritto dall'altra parte. Ieri Rrrrrafa ha capito molto bene fin dall'inizio cosa stava succedendo: Roger stava anticipando, stava colpendo presto come non mai. Quei rovesci incrociati vincente, dopo un toppone dell'avversario, quei rovesci lungolinea contro il rovescio dell'avversario, i dritti vincenti in ogni parte del campo. E quel servizio killer: lo slice da destra, che gli ha procurato non so quanti punti. E infatti Rafa ha cercato di essere aggressivo nel secondo set, ma c'è riuscito fin quando Roger non ha ritrovato percentuali di servizio adeguate.
Un Federer in salute, motivato, brillante, batte in una settimana i numeri 5,4,3 e 1 del mondo, perdendo un solo set, in finale. Non è un caso, è il preludio di una rinascita del suo gioco in grande stile. 

Flick of the wrist: The shot

Il nostro prestigioso blog prende nome da una delle esecuzioni più difficili e spettacolari del tennis, il flick of the wrist appunto, quindi ci pare doveroso proporne una sintetica analisi.
La traduzione italica del termine, colpetto di polso, rende bene l’idea del tipo di esecuzione di cui parliamo, ovvero un colpo non giocato di potenza ma di precisione il cui controllo viene affidato interamente all’azione del polso.
Alla stessa maniera di quei colpi che non richiedono forza ma grande sensibilità: drop shot, stop volley e passanti stretti per esempio.
Giocato spesso in condizioni di equilibrio precarie, contro colpi particolarmente veloci o profondi e comunque quando non si ha il tempo per esecuzioni “standard”, il flick of the wrist è l’ultima speranza a cui affidarsi per salvare il punto.
La possibilità di cambiare e nascondere la direzione della palla un attimo prima dell’impatto è un vantaggio per chi lo esegue, ma naturalmente è la qualità del polso che differenzia i risultati in campo tra i vari giocatori…
Ma adesso passiamo alla pratica e vediamo come il Signore di Basilea ne ha fatto una sua peculiarità tennistica sfruttandolo mirabilmente in frangenti differenti.

In uscita dal servizio:



Passante in corsa:


Di diritto quasi da pittino


No look...


Surreale!!!


Se le vostre iniziali non sono RF e non avete un polso alieno, don't try this at court...

Late Show Top-Ten: cosa non vorresti ti capitasse su un campo da tennis/Late Show Top Ten List: Things you would never want to happen to you on a tennis court

Prendendo spunto dalla geniale top-ten del Letterman, la prima puntata sul tennis. Ready.. GO!

Le cose che non vorresti che ti capitassero su un campo da tennis:

10) Che una lente sfuffasse [andasse a farsi fottere] durante un match contro Nadal alle WTF [I have to dry aggressive, no?]

9)  Arbitrare Isner-Mahut a Wimbledon.

8) Essere una delle racchette di Marat.

7) Essere passati da MuzzaPPRR, ma solo perchè significa dover vedere questo .

6) Accorgersi improvvisamente di avere due mani.

5) Chiamare un fallo di piede a Serena Williams.

 

4) Questo [perchè ai tennisti sbagliati, poi?]

3) Essere un uccellino incolpevole che passa di lì durante un doppio in Australia.

2) Chiedere il medical time-out per "una banana incident"

     [era meglio così]

1) ... QUESTO!


                                                                                                                                                                          
  
Inspired by Letterman’s genius Top Ten, here’s the first episode on tennis. Ready…GO!

Top Ten Things you would never want to happen to you on a tennis court:


10) A contact lens messing up with you during a match against Nadal at the WTF [I have to dry aggressive, no?]

9) Getting to umpire Isner/Mahut in Wimbledon.

8) Being one of Marat’s rackets.

7) Getting passed at the net by Muzza (PPPPRR), but just because this means you'll have to see this.

6) Realizing, all of a sudden, that you have two hands!. 

5) To call a foot fault on Serena Williams.
 
4)  This. [Why always to the wrong players, by the way?]

3) Being an an innocent birdie which happens to pass by, during a doubles match in Australia.

2) Requesting a medical time out due to a  "a banana incident".
[This is even better!]

1) ... THIS!

Il testamento di Reto

Come primo brano di questa rubrica, vi propongo un evergreen. 
Sulle note di "Il testamento di Tito", di Fabrizio De Andrè (del quale vi allego il link di youtube, anche se mi auguro che tutti voi conosciate De Andrè a memoria!!!)  ecco a voi "Il Testamento di Reto". Enjoy!




Il Testamento di Reto


Non avrai altro goat, all'infuori di me,
spesso mi ha fatto pensare:
genti diverse, simply the best
non te la volevan cantare.
Credevano a un altro diverso da te,
che non sapeva giocare
Credevano a un altro diverso da te
che non sapeva giocare.

Non nominare il nome di Luthi,
non nominarlo invano.
Con un banner piantato nel fianco
gridai “fai la foto” e il suo nome:
ma forse era stanco, forse troppo occupato
e non ricambiò il nostro amore
Ma forse era stanco, forse troppo lontano
davvero, lo nominai invano.

Onora Robert. Onora Lynette
che fotografa il nostro striscione,
bacia la mano dal tocco elegante
costretta a subire il rattone:
durante il tie break mi si fermò il cuore
e ho provato dolore.
durante il tie break mi si fermò il cuore
e ho provato dolore.

Ricorda di santificare gli ace.
Facile per Isner e Ivo
entrare nei campi col fare da giganti
trattar palle come fotoni.
per poi finire a rete e sbagliare
giocare come animali.
per poi finire a rete e sbagliare
giocare come animali.

Il quinto dice "non vamossare"
e forse io l'ho rispettato
rimanendo in silenzio,nel 2008
capendo che si era dopato.
Ma poi senza droga, perse un fottio
infortunio, secondo lo zio.
Ma poi senza droga, perse un fottio
infortunio, secondo lo zio.

Non commettere falli che siano doppi,
cioè non disperder le prime.
Prega il tuo santo ogni volta che serve,
così sarai uomo di fede:
sull’erba svanisce, ma sulla terra rimane
se è riga lo dice Lahyani.
Tu, forse, hai confuso se è dentro o se è fuori,
col falco son sempre dolori.

Il settimo dice "non Fedalare"
se del tennis vuoi essere degno.
guardatela oggi, questa legge del goat,
giornalisti senza ritegno
“guardate la fine di roger alieno”,
fabretti si sbaglia di meno.
“guardate la fine di roger alieno”,
fabretti si sbaglia di meno.

Non dire falsa testimonianza
non fare come zio Toni.
Lo sanno a memoria il regolamento
e invocano sempre il ginocchio
Ha spergiurato sul goat e sul suo onore
e merita un nipote trattore.
Ha spergiurato sul goat e sul suo onore
e merita un nipote trattore.

Non dimenticare di spernacchiare,
e non desiderare la Sposa.
Odontoiatri, ditelo a pochi
per muzza si può far qualcosa?
Il matrimonio e le gemelle che amore
fortunata senza pudore:
oltre le Birkin e lo shopping infinito:
Mirka, ti invidio il marito.

Ma adesso che viene quel dritto anomalo
mi toglie il dolore dagli occhi
e scivola il drop al di là della rete
lo sogno tutte le notti.
io nel vedere questo roditore,
madre, io provo orrore.
Nel fine gioco che non cede al toppone,
madre, ho imparato l'amore.