Tennis News • With Nothing To Lose, Does Federer Have A Shot At A Win Over Nadal In Paris?

 

By Ricky Dimon

 

“Nothing to lose” has to be the most annoying saying in sports.

 

There’s always something to lose. You know, like the actual game. Or match. Or race. Or whatever the particular competition may be. And that’s not even to mention the spoils that came with those competitions–in tennis’ case, such as ranking points and prize money.

 

But if ever a time the “nothing to lose” mantra rings true, it’s for Roger Federer in his upcoming French Open semifinal blockbuster battle against Rafael Nadal.

 

Consider: if Federer loses, well, that’s supposed to happen. Nadal is an obvious favorite as an 11-time champion at the French Open–including two straight–and owner of a 12-2 clay-court record against his arch (but friendly) rival. If Federer wins, it will be the 21st biggest accomplishment of his illustrious career. Can you imagine the hype surrounding a Federer victory on Friday–beating Nadal on clay, at the French, at 37 years old, after having not played this tournament since 2015 and having not played at all on clay since 2016 prior to this season?

 

Oh, yes, he stands to gain a ton. But what would he lose (other than the match)? Nothing. The 20-time major champion has no ranking points to defend in Paris and his ranking is of no importance to him at this point in his career, anyway. Prize money, duh, is similarly irrelevant. Legacy? This is a guy who has been to 30 Grand Slam finals; a loss in a semifinal as a heavy underdog would have no negative impact in that department.

 

“I feel now I can play pressure free,” Federer said prior to this clay-court swing, “because what is there to lose? Nothing really. I haven’t played on clay for three years so maybe for the first time in 15 years I can go to the French and be like, ‘Let’s just see what happens.’ And maybe that’s exactly what is going to make a beautiful result.”

 

It’s been beautiful so far at Roland Garros, with four consecutive straight-set beatdowns followed by a four-set win over 2015 FO champion and fellow Swiss Stan Wawrinka. Federer is now 9-1 on clay in 2019 spanning appearances in Madrid, Rome, and Paris. He is well-prepared on the red stuff but also well-rested.

 

Now the question is if he is good enough at the moment to beat–even challenge remains to be seen–the King of Clay.

 

“Like against any player, there is always a chance,” Federer said following his 7-6(4), 4-6, 7-6(5), 6-4 victory over Wawrinka. “Otherwise nobody will be in the stadium to watch because everybody already knows the result in advance. And I think sport does that to you; every match needs to be played before it’s decided. And that’s exactly what everybody believes by facing Rafa. They know it’s going to be tough–but you just never know. He might have a problem. He might be sick. You never know. You might be playing great or for some reason he’s struggling. Maybe there’s incredible wind, rain…10 rain delays. You just don’t know. That’s why you need to put yourself in that position.

 

“For me to get to Rafa is not simple. It took five matches here for me to win to get there. That’s why I’m very happy to play Rafa, because if you want to do or achieve something on the clay, inevitably at some stage, you will go through Rafa. Because he’s that strong and he will be there.”

 

Nadal is, in fact, there in the semis. Federer is, too. The result is their 39th career head-to-head encounter on Friday afternoon.

 

“I knew that when I signed up for the clay that hopefully that’s gonna happen,” the world No. 3 said of showdown against Nadal. “If I would have had a different mindset to avoid him, then I should not have played the clay.”

 

Now it’s time for Federer to take the correct mindset into the match. He’s already doing that, in part, by believing that he has a chance. As for his thinking about tactics, he’ll have to play uber aggressive, play much closer to the baseline than Nadal, and get into net more frequently than we almost ever see from anyone on this surface. Baseline rallies just aren’t going to work in this matchup. And, of course, Federer must fare better on break points than his 2-for-18 effort against Wawrinka.

 

The bottom line is he has to play to win; he can’t play not to lose. After all, for Federer, there is nothing to lose.

 

Ricky contributes to 10sballs.com and also maintains his own tennis website, The Grandstand. You can follow him on twitter at @Dimonator.