Sports: Gritty Instead of Pretty

I think it can be hazardous to make comparisons between athletes in different sports. Are the trials of a Michael Phelps different from a Michael Jordan? Does a Joe Montana have any idea what a Joe DiMaggio goes through?

That being said, when I was watching the 2009 Wimbledon men's final, the whole affair felt more like a heavyweight title bout than a tennis match. The two combatants, Roger Federer and Andy Roddick, exchanged serves like weary prizefighters. Each waited for the other to fold. Even after four hours of play on a sunny London day, both men continued to throw down 125+ mph bombs that kicked up the chalk on the dusty lawn of Centre Court. It looked like it might go on forever, but in the end it was Roger Federer who was left standing with a record-breaking 15th Grand Slam title.

If you tuned in only during the middle of the first four sets, you might be surprised to learn that Federer won. He was, after all, unable to muster any impossible-looking shots, unable to summon the picturesque strokes that drive sports writers to hyperbole. In fact, at times Roger looked as helpless to return Roddick's fearsome serves as a spectator watching from the stands. Roddick's made drastic improvements to his game this year - he hired coach Larry Stefanki, slimmed down his frame, and learned to volley more comfortably. He hurried Federer from the baseline, he broke Federer's serve twice, and Roddick's serve was unbreakable for more than four hours.



In tennis, though, it's not who hits first but who hits last. Federer had a little more gas in the tank, and after he saved two break points at 8-8 in the final set, the strategy began to emerge: hold on to the serve at all costs, and wait for Roddick's body and technique to crumble. It finally happened in the 30th game:



In that final set, Federer embraced the safe, passive baselining that he usually abhors, wearing Roddick down by forcing him to hit more and more shots. We often hear about players giving everything they have in order to win, but Federer made Roddick give everything he had in order to lose. It was not a stylish strategy, not even a brave strategy. But it worked.