Dubai: Seven-time Dubai Duty Free Men’s Open champion Roger Federer may have let out a little secret, although unwittingly, following his straight sets win over world number one Novak Djokovic on Saturday night.
Federer, who put the final touches on a record 84th singles title on the ATP World Tour, first participated in Dubai in 2002 when he lost his second round match against Germany’s Rainer Schuettler in straight sets.
And today after seven titles in Dubai the Swiss ace not only feels vindicated, but proud to belong and be associated with Dubai and its progress curve. “The seventh is quite unbelievable, what I hear people talking about that, announcing I’m the seven or six time winner here in Dubai. It sounds pretty crazy and it’s nice that Wimbledon and Halle are that way, as well. I also think I had a rough first visit here to Dubai where I was accused for not putting in my best effort, I remember, and I came back the following year and won it and went on a roll,” he recounted.
“I really felt like I had something to prove after that, and I guess that’s what got me to my winning ways here in Dubai. And then ever since then I fell in love with the tournament and the crowd and the city here,” Federer admitted.
Starting in 2003, Federer has done well at the Halle Open in Germany with an incredible seven titles for a 56-9 win-loss record. The Swiss legend’s love affair with the Wimbledon is also legendary, winning seven times starting with his first crown in 2003.
A job well done here, Federer shifted his gaze to the next leg of the ATP World Tour that will move on to North America starting with the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells later this month. “When you’re winning, everything is so easy to explain. I did the right preparation. I did the right things on vacation and the right things on the practice courts. But then if you wouldn’t have won, you’re like wondering: Hmm, was that the right thing to do, to go on the break for so long? Did I do the right things in practice?’ You never doubt when you win, but I do question myself even in the best of times, and I’m still thinking, was there right things, was there anything I could have done differently? And now clearly what do I do from here to Indian Wells? How do I utilize that time the best possible way so I go into Indian Wells and playing again as well as I did last year? Because I think I played great there as well,” Federer related.
The Dubai crown has given Federer even more reasons to be optimistic. “It’s going to be a bit different conditions [in Indian Wells], so I guess I’m going to try to get to the West Coast as quick as possible before playing the XO in Madison Square Garden against [Grigor Dimitrov]. Other than that, you know, I have been through these moments time and time again where I did take long breaks, not playing tennis much, and then I come back and play great throughout my career, so this is nothing new. I don’t feel like I actually have extra pressure by not playing,” he added.
