Did Roger Federer's critics speak to soon?

So Roger Federer is still pretty good then. He didn't just beat Andy Murray in last night's US Open final - he demolished him. And it wasn't Murray's fault.

The Scot conceded that he "came up against the best player to play the game today" after his 6-2, 7-5, 6-2 defeat at Flushing Meadows, and who could argue?

This win takes Federer's haul of grand-slam titles to 13, just one behind the legendary Pete Sampras. The Swiss star is only 27 so time is on his side. Indeed, Federer sent out a warning to the rest of the world afterwards, when he claimed: "I'm not going to stop at 13 am I, that would be terrible."

His emphatic performance more than the result rammed the snipers' words back down their throats. Many had written off Federer before the start of the tournament as he had endured - by his standards - a poor season. (Although, winning twice in 2008 before appearing at Flushing Meadows would not be viewed as shabby by most other players).

Rafael Nadal has wrenched the world No 1 ranking from him, having beaten Federer in the Wimbledon and French Open finals as well as claiming Olympic gold, and Federer has had more than his fair share of early-round exits during the ATP tour.

But as the US Open progressed into the second week, we began to see flashes of the Federer who has dominated the men's game for the best part of five years, culminating in last night's wonder-show.

Now the question is: is he back? Can he maintain this level or did he just have the extra incentive to prove his critics wrong? Will Federer go on to overtake Sampras's grand-slam record or have we really seen the changing of the guard with Nadal now the main man?

Have your say in the comment box below.

Comments

[SAHAR]

I think that Rog is human & could suffer from a period of loss of self confidence but after all he managed to regain his ability to impress the world with his magnificent tennis performance ! I think that Federer is the best tennis player EVER !! So to those who criticize him, he is back & he is going to win as he did before & even if he not ,everyone will enjoy his elegant style of tennis & his way to handle the ball, the fans & himself as the best tennis player in the whole world.

[Ishita Mehta]

if federer wins the australian open and inf rench beats nadal to surpass sampras's record.....what a day it will be....

[Wilson]

I dun think 2008 is a bad season to Federer..He got into the finals of French Open, Wimbledon, and US open..Is that bad????

[sylvia savage]

I have been saying all year that if he did have glandular fever he should have rested earlier. Instead he battled on and Nadal managed to take his Wimbledon and World No. 1 crowns from him. In other words he was able to beat Roger only when Roger was ill. Glandular Fever is no easy thing to get over, it has a habit of coming back just when you think you are over it. Am sure Roger will benefit from a rest and come back even stronger.

[Casper]

I think Roger has had a fright, his illness took away his ability to play tennis to the level he would normally play at. He could not change it until he got better. I feel now that he is back, knowing that it can be taken away at any time. He will come back all guns blazing. Its not titles he wants to collect, he has so many of them.

Roger wants to break records. Hs goals are RG/Wimbledon, Petes records with all that his number 1 ranking will be back where it belongs. 2012 his olympic singles gold. That to top of his career.

What he does then....husband/father/coach/charities.......the oyster is his.

Tennis changed because of Roger, not many players can say that. Rogers records will stand for a long time. I dont look forward to the day he retires as he is Tennis for me.

[JKM]

Fed is great and he will continue to win slams as he plays more tennis. There is not another player like him. Nadal also is very good and so is murray but I believe that Federer really wants to prove he can beat Nadal on the big stage again. He has the heart of a champion and can still dominate other players as was seen in the US Open final.

[EARNEST WINSTON]

I truly despise critics. They only wish they had Federer's God-given-ability. What are the qualifications for being a critic? Are they professional tennis players? But I guess when you are at the top of the mountain there will always be some loser (critic) waiting to see you fall. They provide no insight, just their negativity.

[L]

Even Nadal himself never once underestimated Federer or thought Federer was finished this year, and he has an impressive 12-6 record against him. Critics & media definitely spoke too soon.

[shivam thanvi]

Roger Federer......oops CHAMPION ROGER FEDERER is rightly a GENERATION PLAYER
many players come across ups and downs in their life but this doesnt mean that his performance is declining, rather now after winning US OPEN he will come so strongly that so called World no. 1 Rafael Nadal will get stunned
Another thing is NADAL is not a generation player and can never be as in his whole carrer he as only won FRENCH OPEN and a single Wimbledon{by luck}. IT was his good fortune that he defeated federer
well i would just say one thing to all tennis lovers YOU ALL ARE LIVING IN AGE OF FEDRER

[bogie]

What people overlook is that Roger Federer is not only an exemplary sportsman, he is an artist in the full creative, magical, mesmerizing sense of the word,
Then humble and straight to boot. Artists may have their creative down days but they create and astound for as long as they are strong.
Fed-Ex has a long way to go, to paraphrase Frost" Miles to go before he sleeps:.
We are to be thrilled and held in awe for still some time to come.
Viva Roger!! Mabuhay Ka!!! (filipino for long live)

[norman]

this win will give him confidence for the rest of the year and going into the next season like he said he will get to number one again good luck roger on the next season win that aussie open for your fans and your self he's back and that's a fact watch out nadal cause roger is back the field should be worry.

[Casper]

The wins that others have had over the time period that Roger was ill are really hollow wins. Roger is the most complete tennis player there is. The critics just looked stupid and inexperienced saying what they did without understanding the hiccup in his performance.
Roger would not use his illness as an excuse so it was quiet and kept out of the media.
Anyone who followed tennis and had a pair of eyes could see Rogers strength and movement were not the same.
Roger plays in a league of tennis which very few rarely achieve. I would say that Roger has had a fright that illness can affect his game as it did and I am sure going forward he will now put his foot on the gas to achieve what he wants too, just incase, illness can strike at any time. Roger has kept himself injury free and I see nothing stopping him now.
He is records stand and it will take an extremely good player to beat it.
Roger Federer is tennis

Roger Federer is undoubtedly the greatest player of all time. His technique, his self-belief once he's on the tennis court, his ability to play impossible shots marks him as the greatest. The king of tennis. The god of tennis.

[yellowoctopus]

I don't blame the media and the 'professional critics' about all the criticism around Federer this year, they are just doing their job. I think it would be interesting to revisit the comments Djokovic's parents made about Federer this year, especially the 'the king is dead' comment. A video clip of Roger telling them to shut up (can't recall the tournament where this happened) would also make the article hilarous. The US Open win could also be thought of as Roger telling all the other non-professional critics to shut it.

[Dot Wilcock]

Someone asked who we would like our tennis-mad children/grandchildren to emulate and there is, of course, only one answer for any rational human being to give: Roger Federer. He has class, talent and humility in abundance and I for one will be very pleased if my tennis-mad grandson - Jude - models himself on the greatest of all time.
His artistry and passion are always in evidence even when he is not at his supreme best: long may he reign!

[YodaSD]

Ask us again after the Master's Cup. If he can follow this up in the indoor season and make up some ground against Nadal in the points total then maybe he's back to where he was a year ago.

[xy]

There is no match for Federer's finesse or class. Period. He is going to create many more open-era records!!

[Kaye]

Every other tennis player would kill for Roger's 2008 season:

Appearance in 3 out of 4 Grand Slam Finals
Winning Olympic gold in doubles (and he worked for most of the points earned to win that medal)
Two minor titles won while recovering from a serious illness that usually takes months to conquer
Appearance in the semi-finals of a Grand Slam at the height of mononucleosis.
Winning a Grand Slam.

And people call it downfall? Juornos writing him off as history? That is just funny.

For all it's worth, he just made history and raised the bar ever higher for everybody else. A lot of athletes at their best and fittest cannot even manage to accomplish half of what Federer has so far this season, and the season is not even over yet.

The world watched a man recovering from a serious illness who battled both opponents and the press and all sorts of naysayers, and proved everybody else wrong.

I don't think that The Fed will stop at 15 grand slam titles, given that he has a 4 to 5 years ahead of him. His passion for tennis is unbelievable and he is the best ambassador out there for the sport, fulfilling his obligations even when everybody else has told him to take time off from the courts to get back into shape and maybe to the mindset that had always made him a champion. Instead, he went out there to play tennis, win or lose. You can't find a better sportsman and the result is the recent US Open trophy.

His usual best has just returned.

[Jeanette]

The British public take time to warm to their fellow tennis players just like they did tiger tim. Wimbledon next year will see a difference how the crowd perceive Murray for sure. He has shown them what a great player he has developed into.
Roger is the Master and gentleman of the sport and even in the darkest moments of the savage press he rose above it. Rogers illness must have taken the energy out of him,and mentally even Roger could not over ride the physical side. He is back and back big time. 2009 -New Year and Roger will be hungry as ever for the grand slams. Keep going Roger.

[Juan Ramos]

The King is Back!!!
No doutb that the young guns are coming strong,,(Del Potros, Murrays,etc)but for the time being, at least for the next couple of years Federer will be fit enough to be the all time King of the courts and slam finals... and what i King "merciless on court, but humble outside of it"
-The king is back-

[candy]

federer, like what most people say, is the CLASSIEST and MOST CONSISTENT player i've seen.. he surely will be the "BEST" tennis player ever - considering game play, personality, consistency.. no argument at all..

[Joreen]

Personally, I never doubted that Roger would look like his old superb self again. As Pete Sampras himself told Roger, the media needs a story, and the king being supplanted by the heir is a very compelling tale indeed. Say what some really killjoy Rafa fans may, mononucleosis/glandular fever is no picnic in the park and has a painfully, notoriously difficult recovery period. I need only point to Mario Ancic, himself a Top 10 player in 2007, who was struck down by the same illness and had to endure a six-month hiatus from the sport where his ranking plummeted from Top 10 to No. 85! The fact that Roger was even competing, let alone performingly consistently well at the Slams, a mere 6 months after being diagnosed is undoubtedly a miracle. Even if he only wins one Slam every year for the next four or five years, he will already surpass Pistol Pete. I am relishing the generous helpings of humble pie going around the international tennis press corps! The man, the legend, the greatest of all time: Roger Federer.

[Natarajan]

1 Federer an all time great is alive and kicking.Difficult to say if he still remains at his incredible personal peak but definitely thereabouts.
2 Nadal is right now the best player - most of this year he has been unbeatable by anyone including Federer.
3 Murray is clearly close to the top. 2009 he will be a grand slam contender.

[Arif]

In John McEnroe I thought we had seen the greatest player ever. However, Roger Federer deserves this title. This is the first post I have ever made on an site and I think it is a sign of this man's sporting greatest that a lazy, fat man like me is typing the plaudit:). The Fed Xpress I hope surpasses every record!

[patricia]

P.S. Each time we have a long-term #1, it is as if no one can ever take their place. But it happens every time. I remember when Agassi was just the wild looking upstart!!! Then . . . It never takes away from the record of a long term champion to be replaced by another. That is life and the history of sports.