Roger Federer had to skip the French Open and snap his 16-year Grand Slam streak
For the first time since the 1999 U.S. Open, a Grand Slam will be played without Roger Federer in the draw. The 34-year-old, 17-time major winner had to withdraw from the French Open on Thursday after a back injury suffered this winter left him less than 100 percent heading into the year's second Slam.
Federer announced the decision on his Facebook page:
Given Federer's record streak of 65 straight Slams (which beat the men's record by nine and cleared the women's mark by three), the decision wasn't as easy as it'd seem at first glance. It's a mark Federer holds dear and one that's an impressive sign of the durability he's shown during his career. And it also wouldn't have been that hard to extend.
As far as we know, Federer is in no worse physical shape than he was at the Rome Open, a tournament he used as a Roland Garros tune-up and managed to win a match at. The world No. 3 could have gone out to Court Suzanne Lenglen and given it the same 75 percent, maybe winning a round or two, keeping the streak alive and his health in relative tact.
(VALERY HACHE/AFP/Getty Images)
But that's not the way Federer is or the way tennis works. Unlike Lou Gherig or Cal Ripken coming in to pinch hit or forcing themselves into the lineup when they weren't at their best, Federer couldn't go to Paris and just take it easy. Tennis isn't baseball -- you can't be halfway into it. Either you play hard or you don't play. Skipping the French is far more noble than playing in the French and losing in the second round, all in a vain attempt to sustain a record you already have.
Federer also has to be realistic and keep an eye on the future. He wasn't winning the French Open. He knows that. The rest of the field knows that. At 100 percent, he could have maybe snuck into the semifinals or finals based on a hot streak and favorable draw, but with even the smallest part of his health compromised he had no shot to hang with Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, Andy Murray or any of the other top players who excel on clay, a surface that's never suited Federer all that well anyway.
(Aurelien Meunier/Getty Images)
The Grand Slams Federer still has a chance to win are, in order: Wimbledon, U.S. Open, (small drop) Australian Open, (skydiving drop) French Open. Why compromise your chances at the first two at the expense of the last? Keeping up a streak isn't worth it, nor is taking a flyer and hoping your body can hold up. When you're 34, the body controls you, not the other way around.
The last time Roger Federer missed a Slam, Pete Sampras was No. 1, Andre Agassi was No. 2, Tim Henman was the great British hope and Jim Courier, Michael Chang, Justin Gimelstob and Boris Becker were all in the rankings. Federer, then 18, was No. 104 and four years away from his first Grand Slam title.
If he wants to win another, he's going to have to use his mind as much as his body. Knowing he had to stay away from Roland Garros is an unfortunate step in the right direction.
