Roger Federer’s Fourth Round Loss at the hands of Tommy Robredo in straight sets triggered a buss amongst the critics and the media that the Swiss Maesto is nearing his end.
2013 marked the first time since more than a decade (2002) since Federer did not make a Major Final, losing here after a shocking Second Round Exit at Wimbledon.
But World No.1 Novak Djokovic jumped to Federer’s defense, stating that everyone should let Federer be alone and should not spark rumors about his retirement.
“Roger did not play close to his maximum level, so it's always a question of why is he not playing well. People need to give him a break a little bit, because I think it's normal to expect that he's not moving as well as he did when he was No. 1 and he was so dominant,” the Serb commented.
“For me, he's still playing really well and definitely deserves to be one of the top-five players in the world, no question about it.”
Djokovic also added that he does not have any advice for the Swiss Maestro on his plans for the future despite Federer dropping outside the Top-5 (World No.7) which happens to be his lowest in a decade. “How long he's going to play? That's a question for him. But he's what, 31, 32 years old?”
He further added, “Tommy Haas is 35 and close to the top-10. So I think people are seeing Roger always being a top-three, top-two guy and competing for Grand Slam titles. That's not happening, and all of a sudden it's a huge surprise.”
No comments:
Post a Comment