Roland Garros is a fortnight away and Roger Federer, chasing that elusive French Open crown that would complete his collection of Grand Slam titles, cannot have chosen a worse time to suffer a slump in form. At the start of the year, he appeared more invincible than ever, stretching his winning streak to a whooping 41 matches, including capturing the Australian Open title for the third time, and without dropping a set. With his chief nemesis Rafael Nadal in an 8-month title draught and having his biceps handed to him by guys like Mikhail Youzhny and Fernando Gonzalez, Federer would have had cause to think this would be the year he'd finally end all the Greatest Of All Time debates. He'd already beaten Nadal twice (at Wimbledon and in the Masters Cup), suggesting he had, at long last, figured out the Spanish bullfighter, the way he'd deconstructed other players like Lleyton Hewitt and David Nalbandian who had troubled him in the past.
All that the mighty Swiss had to do was to mantain his form and hope Nadal maintained his, but that all turned around terrifically at the Masters at Indian Wells. Federer had his winning streak shredded in straight sets by the tenacious Guillermo Canas, a player who'd just returned to the tour after a 15 month doping suspension while Nadal snapped his losing streak to clinch the title. The highlight of the Spaniard's powerful run to the title was his victory over Andy Roddick in the semifinal. Jimmy Connors had coached Roddick out of a hole to the US Open final last year and the young American looked a legitimate threat to uproot Nadal as the second-best player in the world. Instead, it was Rafael, playing more aggressively than we'd ever seen, who completely ripped Roddick apart in the semifinal, highlighting the gap between the top two players in the world and the rest of the field.
How swiftly the tables turn. In the beginning of Spring, Federer looked more unbeatable than ever, while Nadal seemed to be losing his edge. By the end of the tournament at Indian Wells, it was Nadal who was holding all the winning cards and Federer whose head was hanging and shoulders slouched. The two met in the final of the Masters at Monte Carlo, and whatever notions there had been that Federer had finally solved the Rafa puzzle were extinguished as the King of Clay demolished the Swiss in little over an hour. Nadal would go on to win a record third straight Rome Masters title the next week while the not-so-mighty Fed would find himself ousted in the early rounds by journeyman Filippo Volandri.
There's still time for Federer to regroup- he is still the second-best player on clay, but the signs are ominous. He's fired his coach, always a sure sign of desperation, and it's rather a jaw-dropper in itself to say that the normally unflappable Federer could be desperate. His loss to Nadal at Monte Carlo showed that he'd not only not managed to close the gap between him and the Spaniard on clay but that the gulf between them had grown. Nadal's winning streak on clay has grown to 79 at the time of writing, and armed with a heavier serve and a lefty top-spin forehand that's more penetrating than ever, even matches you'd expect to be close have been routine for him. That streak will end eventually, though God knows when, but if any player should end it, I think everyone would like the mighty Fed to be the one. But let's not get ahead of ourselves. Federer's lost his mojo for now and has two weeks to get his groove back.
