I had to re-post this due to a database glitch. Sorry if I inconvenienced anyone.

couldn't agree with you more.
i generally think that the reason everyone touts progression in the sport is because everyone found faults with it
but yet we all tend to hear phrases such as 'the good ol' times' again and again.
he represents the best of both worlds. he represents balance. who isn't striving for it in this day and age? We should all be jealous, really. He should be the guy we love to hate.
Andy Roddick put it the best, I think: I'd love to hate you, but you're really nice.

This has just become my favorite blog entry from you, cheryl! Beautifully written.

Cheryl,
Liked your post as almost always!
What is this 'Love to hate' thing? I fail to undrstand with my blockhead.

newfangkc - "love to hate" is an expression that means that sometimes a celebrity is so smug or acts so badly that fans actually enjoy disliking him or her.

Jimmy Connors is a prime example of this. Tennis fans enjoyed not liking him.

i heared them many times called him the " citizen of the world" that is so true as you said the french crowd and the aussie crowd make him feel like he plays in his back yard amazing realy i thought they are more passionate than Basel crowd i think part of it as you said becasue of his massive talent and royal attitude if you mix them together you get one thing that is Roger Federer

The Basel crowd is not generally gogo-gaga over celebrities, so to then Federer is no big deal!!.............and I understand tennis is not that big over there!!!

Cheryl, im waiting patiently for a fresh blog on Rafa!!!..........its way overdue!!!!

I've been told that the Swiss do their best to try to respect Roger's "personal space".

They adore him there even if they're quiet about it.

I think that happens at the home towns when they sensibly decide that their hero needs to live normal life atleast somewhere... I remember seeing henman shopping at a mart in Oxford and nobody was staring at him (and this was at the time Henmania was at its heights).. I was really tempted to walk up and ask for an autograph, but since everyone else was respecting his personal space, I too decided it was better that way...

We all like to claim Federer as our own because he is TENNIS personified.

And YES we Spaniards like him too! Look at the Madrid Masters footage from last year. He has a LOT of fans there.

Oh, I didn't mean that they dislike him in Spain, but there is no confusion over whether the crowd is going to cheer for Nadal or Fed there.

Very true, cheryl!
But if the Fed is playing Söderling, Berdych or anyone from France...
He becomes "Rogelio Federero" just like that! ;-D

Monalysa - since Cheryl's last blog on Nadal, she has written one on Federer and TWO on Djokovic. Clearly she is in "neutrality" mode.

I expect ones on Murray, Soderling, and maybe even Roddick forthcoming before we get another on the world No. 1!!

Ricky, she won't be able to help herself when Rafa wins the Australian Open and becomes Mr. "4-in-a-row".

Touche.........grafight!!!!!!!.....lol!!!!!!!!!!

VAMOS!!!!!!!!!!

Ricky, you'll be in for a long wait if you expect a Soderling blog. Might do Muzz, but only if he does something interesting.

................I already have a Roddick blog started. :D

cheryl what about one on 2teenage hopefuls" yeah, I know Dimitrov, less said. Or one on folk who are shooting up the rankings. I sometimes feel it's too much rog 'n raf. Just hastily skipping off now and dodging the missiles....;)

Aahh, did not mean to write "2" teenage hopefuls. Must be more than that...surely?

How about a blog on the horrors of trying to get through the off-season of tennis--lol. How us great fans handle (and sometimes don't handle well) the lack of tennis!

deuce - of my last 6 blogs, ONE has been about Roger or Rafa. :D (looks like I agree with you)

f4t, deuce I will take your suggestions into consideration.

Look, I understand. One one hand you have 2 guys who have been at the top now for years, taking turns winning All the Majors, most of the Masters, breaking records, accomplishing "all-time firsts" right and left... How do you make anything else comparatively interesting?

fan4tennis - thats actually a darn good idea

Good news for federer fans on his match up with nadal from now on is that who stands to lose in every match now? It is obviously Nadal from here on.

Federer can live with the consolation that he lost at 29-30 years of age to on of the best of all time at the peak of his abilities. On the contrary, every loss Nadal has to Federer from now will be difficult to digest.

If he can't beat a 29 year old Federer at the peak of his game, he would not have had any chance against him when Federer was younger. That will make him question himself, and not questioning himself was Nadal's biggest strength.

So Observer, you think Rafa would lose sleep over his loss to Davy, Roddick and Ljubicic, who are all above 28 years old? If he can afford to lose to them, what make you think he can't afford to lose to Fed? You certainly seem to be one desparado Fed fanatics, trying very hard to discredit Rafa's achievements just to make your Fed looks better. Do bear in mind that whatever happens from now onwards, it won't change the fact the Rafa HAD BEATEN Fed during Fed's TMF days, from 2004-2007, on clay and on one of Fed's favorite surface the hard courts. Please accept it.

Oh yeah, I'm not sure that Fed would live in consolation that during his peak, he lost to a seventeen years old upstart and continued to lose to him more than beating him, right until Fed himself was well past his peak. Not only that, there came another young gun who also happened to beat Fed more often than Fed beats him. I don't know whether Fed can find any consolation in that.

I enjoyed reading your blog cheryl, interesting perception. :) Felt good, when unfortunately I find most of the blogs on this site lacking... (but i keep coming back) lol. Go figure! :) It may be I like the blogs more than I think I do, or I'm just committed to this site cause I started looking at and participating in them on TT. cheers

first

............and with Rafael Nadal dominating, it?s not even entirely civilized

Cheryl, how could you say such a thing????????????

Sounds like only the Spaniards like the fact that Rafa and not Roger is No 1 - I doubt it!

Nadline - I'm almost certain that you know what I meant, but in case you've actually misconstrued that statement, what I meant was that Nadal's brand of tennis is not the "civilized game" that it once was -- it's war. And as Rafa is the consummate warrior I'd expect nothing less from him.

I threw in the towel on Andy R 4-5 years ago when it became grossly evident that if I ever wanted to cheer for a slam champ I'd best jump on the Swiss Mister train, and let's face it, there really is alot to like about Roger. It's not surprising that all those thirsty tennis fans who have been drawing from a dry well for decades are willing root for a guy from another country. The English aren't the only folks who haven't had a champ in decades. I can't remember when the French last had a champ win the Majors (Yanick Noah before my time) so why wouldn't they cheer like mad for Roger, afterall Switzerland is a near neighbor if not exactly a relative. In my humble opinion though, all the good will for Roger has little to do with who he is personally (personality), but rather the history he's created in the game, and as much as people like a winner, they also tire of same ol, same ol, so at some point some young upstart will get a go at Roger, and instead of the crowd chanting "Roger, Roger", they'll be chanting the upstarts name and then Roger really will know that it's the beginning of the end.

Maya - Interesting perspective...and one people don't usually admit to. Kudos.

And while I agree that people like to back a winner, I don't think that's the only thing with Roger. If you want proof, simply look to Pete Sampras. He had all of the records before Roger did, and rarely inspired more than polite applause.

I think Roger appeals to people on a variety of levels...and one of them is who he is off the court.

Well, that's to bad about Pete. Your probably right. I watched the 2006 FO on TC last night and was amazed at the French crowd booing a 19-20 year old Nadal as he walked onto the court. They were literally booing their young champion Nadal. They
were both babies in terms of what they would accomplish over the next 4-5 years,
and honestly, Roger had the personality of a donut back in those days, so why
this overwhelming longing for the young swiss to win. Thanks for the kudos, but
really not deserved. I've stuck with the same losing football and baseball teams since childhood, other than this year. Goooo Giants.

Yes Cheryl I do understand what you were implying, it's just that one or two people would really like to believe that literally about Nadal and might just take comfort from it especially in this context of Roger being the 'civilized' one. Give me the war any day on a tennis court, if I want art, I'd go to the theatre.

Basically even before Rafa came along Roger's game never appealed to me, so it was refreshing to discover Rafa who I never get tired of watching play tennis, so Roger may have won the fans award by a slight margin, but I don't know that he is that much more universally popular than Rafa, judging by the attention Rafa gets all over the world, and I understand that Rafa's kit sells 10 times more than Roger's, so people put their money on Rafa when it matters.

The French don't like the Spanish first off, on top of that Rafa beat two of their hopefuls on his way to his 1st RG title so that just made matters worse for Rafa, and what with that forgettable man Guy FORGET giving Rafa bad publicity, it's no wonder the French are hostile to him. As for Roger's smooth personality, we've all seen the creases when he is not winning, it's easy to smile your way through being top dog but we see his true colours when he is on the back foot.

Maya - The French crowd is downright despicable towards Nadal. They've never much liked him, but when he lost to Soderling last year, they were like a bunch of jackals waiting to pounce on his tennis corpse.

It was pretty disgusting, actually. And I suppose I could see if he'd been deliberately offensive to them, but all he did to earn their ire was to be the master of their tournament. What he said in the presser after the match was nothing less than the truth.

Nadline - Rafa is VERY popular, don't get me wrong -- especially with the younger crowd. But I've traveled to many different tournaments in a number of different countries....when given the choice, the fans tend to lean towards Federer, Miami being the one exception I can think of.

cheryl, I think Rog's become a legend in his own playing time hasn't he? Similarly, while not being a football fan, if I'd had the opportunity to watch a legend like Pele, I would've taken it. One of the reasons people cheer him and go to watch him play these days. Rog is much more poular in UK than darling Andy:(
Also there's an awful lot of European history still washing round here, eg look at football rivalry. Now Switzerland stayed neutral during recent conflicts so we can't really get worked up about them and I think that kind of neutrality washes off on Rog so he can appeal universally. Hope u can see what I'm getting at. Another eg would be Sampras who was SO American I cannot see him having much universal appeal.

Well Fed is so popular because he plays a classic, graceful style of tennis, he speaks English and French fluently, and he started beating almost everyone he faced and won many slams since 2004. I believed he had an image revamp, did away with his pony tail or long hair, and started to have this polished and suave look and that made him more popular, especially among the elitist group, including the Parisian. They all love a winner.

Rafa on the other hand, started off with his pirate look, rather rugged and unpolished looking, grunts and perspires alot during play. His style was unorthodox, 'ugly', workmanlike and so he was not as appealing as Fed, especially to the elitist group. Furthermore Rafa with his muscular look and his great physical strength, was often accused of taking steroids and performance enhanced drugs. Its no wonder that the elitist Parisan don't like him.

Furthermore, it was Rafa who always stopped their beloved Fed from winning his FO title, all the more they hated Rafa and so they booed him and cheered for his downfall in that FO 2009 match against Sod. Its poetic justice, that in FO 2010, the one they cheered for to bring down Rafa in 2009, was also the one who brought down Fed this time at the FO. Rafa also reclaimed his King of Clay title at the FO this year by beating the same man who brought him down last year, poetic justice again.

I'm not surprised that Fed is more popular than Rafa, as he has a longer time to build up his fan base. Everyone loves a winner, so while Fed was having his TMF days from 2005-2007, he had won over many fans back then and many had since become his die hard fans. If Rafa continues his winning runs from now on till the next few years, I won't be surprised that his fan base may grow in numbers to overtake Fed's. Rafa is getting more and more popular by the days and he is attracting fans of a younger age group than Fed's.

Both Fed and Rafa are well behaved off court and they have done their parts in charity works and also in helping to promote tennis. They are both well loved and respected by many people, even though there may be exceptions.

There is a lot of hype around Roger, also in Sampras's days, there was no internet and most tournaments were not accessible to most people, in the UK for example, we waited from one year to the next to see any tennis at all, so the players were not exposed to the fans as much as they are now.

You only have to listen to tennis commentators brainwashing everyone of Roger's attributes whilst Rafa had to prove beyond reasonable doubt that he is the man. If they keep going on and on about someone then people just follow like sheep, many of them like friends of mine will swear blind that Roger never loses his temper, that he just goes on court and quietly beats everyone without any fuss, and that he takes losing graciously, because that is what they are being fed; all his 'bad loser' tendencies are swept under the carpet and the constant drumming on about his class and his elegance is bound to sink in, except to people like me who can't be easily led.

Well said nadline, we are not easily led. We can see for ourselves what is true and what is not. We can decide for ourselves what is it that we like and what we don't like. We need no one to tell us what to like and what not to like. In other words, we use our brain and not depend on others' brain, simple as that.

.........be easily led.


sorry - easily LEAD!!!!

well said nadline. some people definitely could see it much earlier on. more people saw it since 2008 when things didn't go to plan but the signs were definitely there. i thought things got better until wimb this year when poor berdych had to intensely defend his win...shame.

you poor souls will take a few more years to see how easily led you were lol. It is cracking already. Soon Toni Nadal will be sent packing and then we will all see the truth. He is the only one who can tame the beast and keep him civilized

Seethe - yeah...right
If it didn't fall apart last year, it won't fall apart any time soon. You must be blind not
to see what family means to Rafa. But it's not just family, or country and such that make up a champion of Rafa's caliber. There is much around him that could crumble tomorrow, but he would still be victorious.

Hi, Cheryl: Great and True article! Risking sounding like a psychic or whatever, Roger has a "Light" that shines through. There is a German term for that, "shining." And it is so true, just watching him think and strategize his way through matches is pure enjoyment. I have many taped and re watch them, still saying "Wow" when he executes some of those amazing shots. And you are right. He is graceful with his communication and demeaner. He has grace. He is grace. I know it is silly to wish it but I wish he would never end.

Interesting blog, Cheryl, but I can't say that I entirely agree.

As others have mentioned, Roger's career has happened in the age of the internet, which makes it a lot easier to build up a base of fans from all over the world. Although he is not American, and thus has not had the same impact on tennis in America as Tiger Woods' success has had on golf, Roger's success probably has helped the sport all over the world, including in America. (Although it is still pretty much a niche sport here). Unlike Tiger, Roger has not had a major scandal that has damaged his reputation.

Roger has been a bit churlish and ungracious at times, as any tennis fan without blinders can see, but he does seem to be gracious toward his chief rival and may even be genuinely friendly toward him. Many people who love Roger may not be aware that while Roger professes friendship and devotion to Rafa, whether by neglect or subtle encouragement, he has allowed his website to become a place for the most bitter of his fans to engage in extremes of Rafa bashing. I have been a member of other athlete's official websites where bashing of rivals is strictly forbidden. That Roger's official site not only allows bashing, but seems to thrive on it, is one of the reasons that I can no longer root for him.

Roger may be a nice guy overall, but I have come to believe that his gracious image is just that--an image he has very successfully cultivated and kept untarnished in this age of celebrity worship. As luckystar said, at some point a few years ago Roger dropped the ponytail for a flattering haircut, started wearing better-looking and coordinated tennis outfits, started wearing fancy clothes off-court, and started hanging out with celebrities and fashion mavens. While he has a lifestyle that many people would love to hate, Roger is not in our faces constantly, unlike many other celebrities that we quickly tire of. People haven't really had an opportunity to get tired of him, either. Right now, Roger seems to have it all. If there is ever a crack in that image that resonates with sports writers and the general public--so far his less-than-gracious comments in press conferences rarely get more than a passing notice--Roger's popularity will decline.

?Tomorrow?s match will be very difficult," said Nadal. "Roger is one of the greatest in history if not the best, so it will be a very difficult one and I will try my best to play a really good one. It will be a good test and we will see what will happen. We played a lot of matches against each other so we know each other. I want to win tomorrow and I?m sure so does he.?

"If you want proof, simply look to Pete Sampras. He had all of the records before Roger did, and rarely inspired more than polite applause."

Ha ha, Cheryl Agassi having a go at Pete again. Federer is more popular because he is more extroverted, but it also has to do with the fact that the explosion of media coverage has helped his profile in many countries. Also, Federer likes attention - Pete didn't.

But to say Pete inspired only polite applause is a blatant lie. He was wildly popular in most places he played because genuine tennis fans loved him, and this was evident on the biggest stages. Wimbledon, US Open, Australia, Hannover - even in France in 96 after beating Courier in the QF he got a huge ovation. I especially loved it in New York when there would be roars everytime he kicked Agassi's butt (2001 and 2002 were particularly satisfying).

Fed is more endearing and extroverted, but his popularity largely has to do with more developed media and fan cultures. You couldn't have had people arguing 24/7, 365 days a year about Fed-Nadal on a Cheryl Murray blog in the 90s. Easy as that.

...not to mention the bandwagon jumpers who only got to know fed when he became no. 1.

cheryl seems to be one of the Federer bandwagon jumpers, the sun is always shining for Federer in her eyes, whilst the weather is always a gloomy cloud in Nadal's world.

Yes, the bandwagon culture grew substantially in the last decade. Largely has to do with the fact that Federer is a lot more in tune with mainstream media's trends than Pete ever was. But I guess that comes down also to what the players see themselves as. Federer has always given the impression that he considers himself a lot more than simply a tennis champion - a celebrity and role model for various things other than tennis; whereas Pete has looked at himself as a tennis player and a role model in sport only.

As for Nadal, he is immensely popular as well. And I personally think he handles everything in the best possible way (although I definitely prefer Sampras's game), he endears himself and yet doesn't give you this impression that he's a peerless celebrity.

You are right about Rafa, samprallica. Rafa endears himself to people, whether they are his fans, his fellow tennis players, or the media. Even sports personalities from other sports love him. I guess that's the main reason his fans love him.

to be impartial, i think federer has really been an exemplary ambassador for sport and set the benchmark for the next crop of players like rafa etc...

Lleyton Hewitt builds the perfect player

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/australian-open-2011/lleyt on-hewitt-builds-the-perfect-player/story-fn77kxzt-1225984245759

?W hereas Rafa has sort of got his A-game and sticks to it the whole time, Roger is actually able to do a lot of different things.?