It was the 2018 Laver Cup. Roger Federer was up against John Isner in a crucial singles encounter on the last day of the tournament. Isner began the match with a bang and won the opening set 7-6. Subsequently, the second set also went into a tiebreaker and the American star had a chance to seal it at 6-5 in the tiebreaker on his own serve. However, up came Federer’s magic. The Swiss maestro produced his trademark backhand returns to level the tiebreaker at 6-6. Further, he went on to win the second set after a quick shift of momentum. This left Isner completely intimidated by the greatness of Federer.
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However, Isner wasn’t the only one who was at the receiving end of the Swiss maestro’s naturally gifted abilities. Many fellow players bowed down to Federer’s ‘intimidating’ qualities which became a talking point in the Nothing Major Podcast. The likes of Sam Querrey, Jack Sock, and John Isner got together on this podcast where they talked about the scariest celebrations in tennis.
Sam Querrey stated that Federer’s ‘Come on’ and celebration was the most intimidating thing because he did it infrequently. Subsequently, Isner recollected a moment from the 2018 Laver Cup and said, “In Chicago, I played this unbelievable match against Roger. I actually had match point on my serve. I went wide of course on the ad side. It’s 6-5 in the tiebreaker. But he took on the rise and went bzing! When he won the second set he fired up. He went like nuts after he won the second set.”
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However, Federer’s aggressive play wasn’t the only thing that intimidated his opponents. The Swiss maestro was a treat to watch on the court and followed a simple routine. It is this quality that left Andy Roddick overawed.
Andy Roddick on Roger Federer: ‘Intimidating in its own way’
During the Served With Andy Roddick podcast, the American star reminisced about his playing days against the Big Three of Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Novak Djokovic. Roddick shared the dressing room with them on numerous occasions and observed some peculiar qualities in each one of them that left him intimidated.
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Roddick mentioned, “I’ve been in the locker room about to play big matches against the three best male players of all time. That preparation, watching what they do, is all intimidating in its own way. Roger is just so calm, the fact that he’s so laid back is intimidating, I don’t like that. But then the other thing I don’t like is that Rafa is chewing through nails for four hours before you play, doing sprints and high knees, well I don’t like that either. Then Novak comes in and he’s stoic, and says this one thing. He’s calm but he also needs things to be in the perfect place. It’s like this angsty kind of thing which I didn’t like either.”
Despite Federer’s retirement two years back, his charisma still resonates not just with fans but also his fellow players. It goes to show the tremendous impact he has had on the tennis world.