Stumbling on his way to the net, Roger Federer dropped his racket and fell to his knees on the red clay. Hardly the sort of grace and precision the world has come to expect from the 17-time Grand Slam champion.
There were other unusual sights in Federer’s 6-4, 6-3, 7-6 (4) loss in the French Open quarterfinals Tuesday against his pal and Swiss Davis Cup teammate Stan Wawrinka.
I made 30-something errors today. He, maybe, made one. I tried many things. Obviously I was not going to leave the French Open without having tried everything out there.
– Roger Federer
Rarely injured and appearing in a 62nd consecutive major, Federer received treatment on his right hand from a trainer. For years and years a dominant and confident force in tennis, Federer slumped in his changeover chair, head bowed, after falling behind two sets to none.
And, according to the ATP, this was the first time since a fourth-round loss at the 2002 US Open — back before he’d won a major trophy — that Federer failed to break an opponent’s serve once in a Grand Slam match.
I know that when I play good tennis, when I play my best tennis, I can play so heavy from both sides that it’s really tough for the opponent to play. That’s why Roger was struggling today. It’s because I was playing so well.
– Stan Wawrinka
The eighth-seeded Wawrinka, who will play 14th-seeded Jo-Wilfried Tsonga of France in the semifinals Friday
So long superior to the younger Wawrinka, Federer was defeated for only the third time in their 19 head-to-head matches, and for the first time in five meetings at Grand Slam tournaments.