WHEN Roger Federer insisted his aim for 2012 was to recapture the world No 1 ranking he held for more than five years, many wondered if the great man was overstretching him ambition. And when John Isner beat him in the Davis Cup on Swiss clay just five weeks ago, the goal seemed ever more far fetched.
However Federer is a man who usually gets what he wants and after scoring his first victory on an outside hard court over Rafael Nadal in seven years, today’s final of the BNP Paribas Open in California’s Indian Wells gives the 30-year-old a perfect opportunity to both go a step closer to retaining top spot and exacting revenge on Isner.
After Isner stunned current world no.1 Novak Djokovic 7-6 3-6 7-6 to reach his first ATP World Tour Masters 1000 series final and give himself a chance to become the first American champion at Indian Wells since Andre Agassi in 2001, Federer and Nadal had to wait more than three hours before a fierce desert storm passed through the Coachella Valley.
The pair still had to deal with wind whipping across the court, cool temperatures that had dropped 20 degrees from the previous evening and intermittent rain drops but Federer, who has now lost only two matches and registered 38 victories since losing to Djokovic in last September’s US Open semi-final, mastered the difficult conditions better to beat Nadal 6-3 6-4.
“I had a no-lose mentality,” said Federer, who had been suffering with a cold throughout the tournament after a long journey from Dubai, where he claimed the 72nd title of his illustrious career two weeks ago . “I didn’t expect to play so well, and this is sometimes when you can pull off the biggest wins of your career. That’s where I’m happy I gave myself a chance this week.”
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Now comes the opportunity to reassert his superiority over 26 year-old Isner after the 4-6 6-3 7-6 6-2 defeat Federer suffered in service of his country on home soil in Fribourg. The 6ft 10in American hit 21 aces to overcome defending Indian Wells champion Djokovic and guarantee his place in the world top 10 for the first time but following up within the space of 24 hours against the most experienced final competitor in the game will be a different matter.
”I will be interested to see how it goes,” said Federer with almost comical detachment . “Without taking anything away from John, in Switzerland the conditions were extremely tough for both of the players. It was played at altitude and it was a clay that was virtually unplayable. Every second bounce had a bad bounce in it.
“At the end when he was up, whatever 5-2 in the fourth with a break in hand, I thought, ‘What’s the point of pushing the ball in?’ He went for it and hit a couple of return winners. He had an amazing fourth set, but it was difficult conditions for us to play.
“This time, hopefully, things will be a bit more normal. I know how difficult it’s going to be. John is playing great tennis at the moment. It’s great and exciting for American tennis, and I’m happy it’s happening in the finals, this rematch for me. So I look forward to that a lot.”
Federer had to fight off break points in opening game against Nadal but promptly broke the Spaniard. Nadal persevered to pull the break back and but allowed the man he had beaten 18 times in 27 previous encounters to reassert superiority in the eighth game, after which Federer served out the set 6-3.
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In the second set Federer plundered the Nadal delivery twice and served for the match with a 5-2 lead. Nadal broke back and held to narrow the gap but at 5-4, 40-30 with Federer at match point, the raindrops returned and play was halted for five minutes. An ace hit out wide on the resumption secured the win.
“I have had doubts in the past against Rafa,”admitted Federer. “It’s just normal, I guess. If you get destroyed like I did in the final of the French Open, next time you play him around, which for me unfortunately was the epic Wimbledon final, of course you’ll be affected a little bit.
“I’ve maybe come through some other matches against other players, but against Rafa it’s a different story. So tonight I felt good about my game.”
Of course the same can be said for Isner who is no longer simply known as Wimbledon’s marathon man. “I knew going into this year that I had the tools and I had the game to be able to at least compete with these guys,” said the giant from North Carolina. “Now I take the court, no matter who I’m playing, expecting to win and believing to win.
“I’ve always been a late bloomer but I’ve just kept on improving. I was a decent junior but nothing special. I was a decent player my first year in college but became the No 1 player in college my junior year.
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“So I’ve always got better as I’ve gotten older and I am 26, which isn’t exactly young, but I feel like my best tennis is still ahead of me. And I would also say I don’t quite have the miles on my body that a lot of other players have because I haven’t been out here since I was 17 or 18.
“I did surprise myself against Djokovic, but now that I am inside the top 10, I feel like I do belong there. I want to try my best to stay there for a while.”
Federer-Isner head to head
Federer leads 2-1
Sept 2007, US Open (hard) 3rd rd FEDERER 6-7 6-2 6-4 6-2
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Oct 2010, Shanghai (hard) 2nd rd FEDERER 4-6 6-3 7-6 6-2
Feb 2012, Davis Cup, Fribourg (indoor clay) ISNER 4-6 6-3 7-6 6-2