https://mobile.nytimes.com/2006/08/20/sports/playmagazine/20federer.html The quality of this is nuts. It really is worth the time if you like writing.

Wallace wrote about Federer a lot. Any particular hits you think I should start with? Alternatively, any particularly good writing about my secret gf, Serena Williams?

David Foster Wallace on Fed was magical. If you have not read it, stop what you are doing and read it now.

This has been said before, but thank you so much for this tennis content. Feels like there’s less and less of this kind of content for any sport at these parts.

Thank god he’s not a serial killer. If the way he serves is any indication, no one would know where the bodies are. Or even know a crime was committed.

I remember a column in Tennis Magazine years ago, maybe by Wertheim then, but I’m not sure....it said tennis is really fortunate that not only their top players, but with most players, you don’t have to worry getting up in the morning and look at the sports ticker and see Sampras or Fed or Nadal had got into some…

Beautifully written. I haven’t watched much in a while, but your writing can’t be missed (and makes me think I need to get back in the habit of tuning in). Thank you.

The thing I like best about Roger’s play is the seemingly nonchalance way he hits his shots and views the results. No macho huffin and puffin here, just a master at work. Reminds me of the way Fred Astaire danced, so cool, so calm, so collected and so great.

It’s the single best stroke in the history of the sport, the skeleton key to all the various puzzles its wielder faces.

so true. this comes mostly from the fact that his toss never changes - it’s always in the same place, whereas most players adjust their tosses slightly to affect spin/placement.

One thing I’ve always found fascinating about Federer (or, rather, the way we talk about Federer) is that there’s never been any backlash. Normally, when an athlete has been around as long as Federer has, and has been as great as Federer has, and is on the receiving end of so much adulation, some sort of noticeable…

The craziest part about that backhand flick that is shown in the last gif is the sound it made. It sounded like the cleanest of strike even with no wind-up or follow-through: the wrist strength and control on that shot is just ridiculous.

Imma let you finish, but Federer’s backhand is the greatest swing of all time.

The third thing would be not sweating. He can be out playing a marathon 4 hour match against Murray in the desert and the dude still wouldnt sweat.

I agree. Some folks contend he moves as well as ever, but I don’t think so. Even on a terrific running cross-court forehand following a Roanic drop shot on Wednesday, you could see him laboring to get there and looking a bit stiff in the process (though he did will himself to the ball!). I do think he has learned to…

Re: the forehand, today he seemed to ask it to do one thing more often than is usually the case: act as a deep, heavy topspin defensive shot. He was using it, I assume, not only to push Berdych back off the baseline, but also as a “safe” shot to give Berdych a chance to screw up (rather than having to go for an…

His hands are also the best of all time. To my eyes, his legs are quite a bit stiffer and he hits from more compromised positions these days than he used to—on the stretch, backing up (look at that first picture ... not ideal)—but it doesn’t matter at all because he can still pop through the ball on either wing, dead…

This is such a good post Giri. Thank you. Sick writing skills. Thank you for bringing exposure and attention to tennis.

Good point. And those are commentators who have played a bit themselves.

There were about a half dozen break points where I thought, “Hmm... Berdych may have Fed on the ropes.”