Dan’s Press Conference Question To Roger Federer

Thanks Scoop, for posting my question and the follow-up to Federer. I have asked Roger a fair amount of questions over the years, and I’m always slightly afraid that he’ll remember me asking him about eight years ago if he was done or getting close to the end and him replying something like, “You guys are acting like I’m 40 years old. Let’s look back five years from now and I see how I’ve done.”

Well, he’s done pretty well. I always like asking Roger questions because he talks directly to the questioner, looks her/him in the eyes and usually has something insightful to say.

I was also happy that when I saw Thomas Blake at the Open this year after not having seen him in a long time, he smiled and said hello and I when I walked past James Blake and said hello he said hello back even though he and I have had some testy moments in the past particularly when he didn’t like Break Point.

Remember Scoop, no politics on the site. Yes, I really like Fed. He is really respectful and has this relaxed air about him when receiving questions which is really nice to see and be around.

Shapo and Tiafoe are buddies, so Denis did that extra exchange with him. He has talked about what a good player Frances is, and obviously has a lot of respect for him.

Denis vs Frances was an entertaining match. The American posters on Match Call Migrants were very annoyed that they were stuck with the Fed vs Anderson match. I watched a bit of it, and it’s true that it was too one-sided to be interesting.

Denis is now No.20 in the live rankings. If FAA manages to defeat Isner he will move from No.33 to No. 25. I have dreams of a Denis vs Félix final, but realise that it’s not likely to happen.

Barty v Pliskova for the final, which I’m sure was not the result the WTA wanted but that’s what it’s got. Halep looked underwhelming losing to Pliskova, 7-5 6-1. Ash bt Kontaveit without trouble. Simona has said (rashly) that she wants to win W’don this year but I can’t see it myself.

Miami’s been a bit of a washout (literally in the sfs)for the women – poor attendance, Serena clearly struggling now, promising younger players not coming through (Sabalenka’s more interested in playing doubles), interesting players (Hsieh) on the old side. No names and games to fill a huge soulless stadium on this new site.

Maybe things will pick up on the clay and in the summer. Remember – a couple of years ago Johanna Konta won Miami 🙂

Building on Indian Wells, I think Miami will be remembered as the moment the NextGen group became fully visible to the casual fan and not primarily to tennis insiders. To the surprise of absolutely no one, FAA is nailing his debut on the big stage. He has been so poised, and so anticipated, for so long that it seems almost implausible that he is only eighteen. However, he has been plying his trade and paying his dues literally for years. I remember vividly that Felix came in 2017 to a challenger in Stockton, CA, seeded for the first time and heralded, and was absolutely crushed by former top-20 player Dmitry Tursunov (who literally lives up the road and had, improbably, been forced to qualify, to the disbelief of the other qualifiers.) After a quiet discussion with his coach Guillame Mark, he lay down on a grassy patch for fifteen minutes, processed the loss, then went back to the practice court and worked briefly but hard on the shots he had missed. He’s had a professional attitude from the start and his fellow players—all of whom unanimously recognize his potential—have had his back in the way that people sometimes do for a special talent—discouraging him, for example, from playing pickup basketball, with its high potential for injury, during a weather delay. Like Neo in the Matrix, they know that he is THE ONE—the rare player, like Federer (who was likewise singled out and awaited) who draws eyeballs to the game and whose charisma attracts fans.