Let's talk about 2017...

[the AntiPusher]

Knees, bad backs, bad wrists..If Rafa and Roger make it back to the top five spots, it may be their best accomplishments, it ain't gonna be easy

 

[Shivashish Sarkar]

I wonder how much Rafa and Roger fans are going to be polarised again shall they come back strongly and play matches against each other. Will it be like old days of bitter losses and glorious wins again? Or will the feelings be less strong than before?

Whatever it is, it's going to be amazing again. Tennis without Fedal matches is incomplete. These guys when up against each other bring a great quality of tennis.

 

[Front242]

To be honest they more often than not play pretty horrendous tennis against each other, eg. Roger charging off to an early lead and then proceeding to play like a 120 year old, mentally challenged baboon the rest of the match only to lose it like a clown. There have been some ok ones though too.

 

[El Dude]

Fedal from 2004 to 2007: 8-6 to Rafa. After, 15-5. From 2008 to the present, Rafa has utterly dominated. Before then it was pretty close. Obviously Rafa's level went up a notch in 2008, just as Roger's went down. But from 2008 through early 2014--which is essentially Rafa's prime years--the matchup has been really lopsided, 15-4. Outside of that, it is essentially even at 8-7 (Roger winning the lone match they played in 2015).

 

[Puppet Master]

Crap. Absolute dogcrap. Roger is unofficially going to play the Mercedes cup, and I think he has completely lost it. The long break probably had effects on his brain.
If I am not mistaken he has some kind of deal with the organisers of Halle, which includes playing there as long as he possibly can. So he intends to play 2 weeks before Wimbo... It's looking like a retirement tour and I am sad as hell...

 

[El Dude]

While I wouldn't jump to conclusions, it is possible that with so many months off he is realizing there is life outside of tennis and wants to spend more time with his family.

But I'm also thinking that he won't retire after 2017 unless he can't recapture his 2014-15 form, or he wins Wimbledon and wants to go out on a strong note. If he comes back and plays like 2014-15 but doesn't win a Slam, maybe he'll give it another go in 2018. Or maybe he wins a Slam and thinks, "Hey, I can still play this game another two or three years."

I wonder to what degree--if at all--he is driven by statistics, that is his career accomplishments. He is sitting on 88 ATP titles and would probably need to play through 2019 to have a chance of reaching 100 (that's 4 a year). Playing as many grass tournaments maximizes his chances. But 100 titles looks nice but is probably more of a fan thing; he probably doesn't care too much, or at least it isn't a top priority.

But really, there's no way of knowing for sure. Roger probably doesn't even know.

 

[GameSetAndMath]

Crap. Absolute dogcrap. Roger is unofficially going to play the Mercedes cup, and I think he has completely lost it. The long break probably had effects on his brain.
If I am not mistaken he has some kind of deal with the organisers of Halle, which includes playing there as long as he possibly can. So he intends to play 2 weeks before Wimbo... It's looking like a retirement tour and I am sad as hell...

This is not a new news at all. Roger signed a two year contract with Stuttgart folks and the first year was 2016. So, he is contractually bound to play for one more year (as I am sure he is getting a huge appearance fee from them). This is not a decision that he took today or yesterday. This was arranged about one and half years ago.

 

[Fiero425]

Crap. Absolute dogcrap. Roger is unofficially going to play the Mercedes cup, and I think he has completely lost it. The long break probably had effects on his brain.
If I am not mistaken he has some kind of deal with the organisers of Halle, which includes playing there as long as he possibly can. So he intends to play 2 weeks before Wimbo... It's looking like a retirement tour and I am sad as hell...

This is not a new news at all. Roger signed a two year contract with Stuttgart folks and the first year was 2016. So, he is contractually bound to play for one more year (as I am sure he is getting a huge appearance fee from them). This is not a decision that he took today or yesterday. This was arranged about one and half years ago.

I didn't understand the rant about Roger being disturbed to be playing the event! Did I miss something? :nono :cover

 

[Front242]

Geez people, enough of the retirement talk.

"Federer, who turns 35 next month, insisted though that this he will come back fighting in 2017.

“The doctors advised that if I want to play on the ATP World Tour injury free for another few years, as I intend to do, I must give both my knee and body the proper time to fully recover. It is tough to miss the rest of the year."

A few more years. A couple is two. A few is more than 2. Relax

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/tennis/2016/07/26/roger-federer-to-miss-rest-of-the-year-with-knee-injury/

 

[Fiero425]

Crap. Absolute dogcrap. Roger is unofficially going to play the Mercedes cup, and I think he has completely lost it. The long break probably had effects on his brain.
If I am not mistaken he has some kind of deal with the organisers of Halle, which includes playing there as long as he possibly can. So he intends to play 2 weeks before Wimbo... It's looking like a retirement tour and I am sad as hell...

This is not a new news at all. Roger signed a two year contract with Stuttgart folks and the first year was 2016. So, he is contractually bound to play for one more year (as I am sure he is getting a huge appearance fee from them). This is not a decision that he took today or yesterday. This was arranged about one and half years ago.

I just can't keep up with the concern on both sides of the equation! Most say Roger should play as long & as much as he can, while at the same time others believe he should retire (me), there's a 3rd faction that believes Fed should pull back on his schedule! WHICH IS IT PEOPLE? :nono :angel: :lolz: :snicker

 

[Front242]

If Djokovic wins zero slams next year should he retire?

 

[the AntiPusher]

Geez people, enough of the retirement talk.

"Federer, who turns 35 next month, insisted though that this he will come back fighting in 2017.

“The doctors advised that if I want to play on the ATP World Tour injury free for another few years, as I intend to do, I must give both my knee and body the proper time to fully recover. It is tough to miss the rest of the year."

A few more years. A couple is two. A few is more than 2. Relax

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/tennis/2016/07/26/roger-federer-to-miss-rest-of-the-year-with-knee-injury/

At age 35 how much flexibility is still left in his body..You brought up a decent point when Roger used the saber net attacking tactics which shortened the long rallies..I would think Roger needs to have very powerful service games to win more free points. This is Rafa's biggest liability, free points these days are very scared and far between. I don't know if Rafa can grind out lengthy baseline rallies like 2005-2014.. Rafa doesn't have the serve or consistency of depth with his ground strokes to hit through his opponents ala Stan vs Djoker. These obstacles that both former number one players face may again be too much to overcome which may reward us with the same ole same ole..Djoker vs Andy or Stan..God help us all because I had enough of watching those acts.IMO

 

[El Dude]

Yep, me too. The homogeneity of Slam finals is getting tiresome, and more so the same old winners, Slam after Slam. Stan made things a bit interesting, and then Cilic came out of nowhere to storm the 2014 US Open (not to mention Kei upsetting Novak to face him in the final), but other than it has been pretty predictable. Only seven players have won the last 44 Slams - that's going back to Rafa's first in 2005.

 

[Fiero425]

Yep, me too. The homogeneity of Slam finals is getting tiresome, and more so the same old winners, Slam after Slam. Stan made things a bit interesting, and then Cilic came out of nowhere to storm the 2014 US Open (not to mention Kei upsetting Novak to face him in the final), but other than it has been pretty predictable. Only seven players have won the last 44 Slams - that's going back to Rafa's first in 2005.

It's what's killing tennis; esp. for the men of late! The ladies seem to be coming along nicely, slowly edging the old out and introducing something new! The men are still have a little ways to go; from "The Big 4" to "The Big 2!" Few upsets still occur! uzzled :nono :angel: :cover

 

[jonathon11]

THANKS FOR YOUR BLOG..:shy:

 

[Shivashish Sarkar]

Yep, me too. The homogeneity of Slam finals is getting tiresome, and more so the same old winners, Slam after Slam. Stan made things a bit interesting, and then Cilic came out of nowhere to storm the 2014 US Open (not to mention Kei upsetting Novak to face him in the final), but other than it has been pretty predictable. Only seven players have won the last 44 Slams - that's going back to Rafa's first in 2005.

You should have the answer to this trivia question:

When was the last time Roger was ranked #16 in ATP?

 

[Shivashish Sarkar]

Yep, me too. The homogeneity of Slam finals is getting tiresome, and more so the same old winners, Slam after Slam. Stan made things a bit interesting, and then Cilic came out of nowhere to storm the 2014 US Open (not to mention Kei upsetting Novak to face him in the final), but other than it has been pretty predictable. Only seven players have won the last 44 Slams - that's going back to Rafa's first in 2005.

You should have the answer to this trivia question:

When was the last time Roger was ranked #16 in ATP?

 

[Fiero425]

Yep, me too. The homogeneity of Slam finals is getting tiresome, and more so the same old winners, Slam after Slam. Stan made things a bit interesting, and then Cilic came out of nowhere to storm the 2014 US Open (not to mention Kei upsetting Novak to face him in the final), but other than it has been pretty predictable. Only seven players have won the last 44 Slams - that's going back to Rafa's first in 2005.

You should have the answer to this trivia question:

When was the last time Roger was ranked #16 in ATP?

Without looking, I'd say it was a long time ago! :lolz: My guess is around '99 when no one even knew who he was; just another stylish player on the "come up!" Safin, Hewitt, Kuerten, Sampras, & Agassi still ruled! :angel: :dodgy:

 

[Shivashish Sarkar]

Nadal's full schedule for 2017:

http://www.gamenguide.com/articles/91268/20161214/rafael-nadal-full-2017-schedule-rafa-to-play-in-19-tournaments.htm

He's in for a full season. Rotterdam and Basel are gutsy inclusions. And, since Roger can be assumed to be playing at Basel, we have a better chance of a Fedal match.

 

[El Dude]

Haha, I've looked at Roger's stats so many times that I can probably answer this without looking. His year-end rankings are (from memory):

1998: 300ish (I think 301?)
1999: 64 (I think)
2000: 29 (I think)
2001: 13
2002: 6
2003: 2
2004: 1

I'm guessing that he was last ranked #16 sometime in 2001, probably late in the year. I suppose early 2002 is possible as well.

So my final answer: sometime in late 2001 or early 2002.