Roger is back, better than ever
Nobody knew what to expect when the 35-year-old Federer announced he was going to come back and play at the Australian Open. The consensus was that it was going to be a farewell tour for the future hall of famer.
That couldn’t have been more wrong
Federer won the Australian Open, beating long-time foe Rafael Nadal in a 5-set classic final. On the way to the final, the now 18-time major winner beat other notable names such as Kei Nishikori, Tomas Berdych and fellow compatriot Stan Wawrinka.
The next two big tournaments after the Australian Open are Indian Wells and the Miami Open, which are played in consecutive weeks and are a serious test of the body due to the extreme heat at both location.
So, what did Roger Federer do? He won both tournaments, only dropping a single set in a tiebreak to young Australian Nick Kygrios in the semi-final of Miami.
Federer is now going to take a considerable amount of the clay court season to let his body recover and start to prepare for the grass court season and his best tournament, Wimbledon.
The Gradual Demise of Bernie…
Bernard Tomic has, along with Nick Kygrios, has been the great hope for Australian tennis for the future. Whilst Kygrios has gone on to have a brilliant start to the season, Tomic could not be a more different story.
Since being eliminated by England’s Dan Evans in the third round of the Australian Open back in January, Tomic has not won a singles match on the ATP tour.
In the 4 tournaments Tomic has played on the current American hard court swing, he has not won a single match and every match he has lost has been to a player with a significantly lower ranking than him.
Tomic pulled out of Miami with an elbow injury, however due to his recent results, the Australian people are taking that excuse with a grain of salt. Tomic lacklustre results and more importantly attitude have led people to believe that the elbow injury is not legitimate and more an excuse.
Serve and Volley is back
Serve and Volley is one of the most entertaining styles of tennis to watch, with the points generally being shorter and engaging.
However, due to the newer technology allowing most players to easily overpower any player at the net. Not since the days of Pat Rafter had there been a true serve and volley style of tennis played at the top level.
This was until previously unknown German Mischa Zverev entered the Australian Open. Zverev had a dream run, making it into the second week of a Grand Slam and beating the likes of big serving American John Isner and World number 1 Andy Murray on his way to the quarter finals.
Eventually his run was ended by the eventual champion Roger Federer, but his run reminded the tennis World that there is a place for serve and volley if it done right. Zverev’s booming left handed serve and sensational first volley allowed him to get into an offensive position on his serving point often.
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