The Caja Mágica of the Manzanares Park Tennis Center brought together the best players in the world in that first edition of the Madrid Masters on clay in May 2009. Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer and Juan Martín del Potro reached the semifinal and stayed on the road to the title.
Roger defeated Juan Martin 6-3 6-4 in one hour and 21 minutes to advance to the title clash against Rafael Nadal. It was his fifth meeting, and Roger had yet to drop a set against the promising youngster. Almost all the numbers were on Federer’s side, establishing himself as the most efficient player on the first and second serves and dominating from the court.
The Swiss kept the points on his racket and didn’t allow Juan Martin to fire his forehand away from his comfort zone. Additionally, Federer was a more creative player on court, crafting points very well in a mix of well-placed serves, spikes, drop shots and net coverage.
Roger took the rhythm out of his opponent’s shots and forced him to constantly think about where the next point was going to fall. Del Potro had four break chances in the first three return games. He squandered them, and it was all over for him in the rest of the clash, as Roger sailed through the remaining service games to keep the pressure on the other side.
The Swiss stole 39% of return points and broke the Argentine once in each set of the six break chances he had to cross the finish line. Federer held a 21-11 advantage in service winners, allowing him to play aggressive tennis and throw 25 winners to del Potro’s 12.
Roger was reliable with his two wingers and his volley, while Juan Martín could only rely on his forehand.
Shelby Rogers on King Roger
Shelby Rogers recently appeared on the Tennis Channel’s Warm and Fuzzy show, where she had her say on a range of fun topics.
“Can I be trapped in an elevator with Roger Federer?” she questioned. “It would be cool to learn from him I think. Someone interesting that has had a long career. That’s who I want to be stuck in an elevator with.
So, if I have a lot of thoughts coming in and things are distracting me what are the one or two things right now that are important,” she said. “I love reading. Bath times are always nice – a nice bubble bath. A little meditation sometimes.
Yeah, it’s really important actually. Something that helps you when you’re on the court and there are a million things going on. But, something also to help you stay present,” she said.
