A record 17 grand slam singles championships, an unprecedented 302 weeks as the world No 1, 80 titles and counting, and a couple of Olympic medals. Roger Federer seemingly has won it all, but there is one accolade missing from that glittering ledger: the Davis Cup.
In November, Federer will have an opportunity to fill that hole after leading the Swiss to their first Davis Cup final since 1992 with a 6-2, 6-3, 7-6 win over Italy’s Fabio Fognini in the fourth rubber.
France provide the opposition in the final, and they are formidable, especially playing at home. And look at their roster – Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, Gael Monfils and Richard Gasquet. If Federer had that kind of support on the Swiss bench, he could have won the Davis Cup a few times.
Federer, however, has usually waged a lone battle, since making his Davis Cup debut in 1999, watching Rafael Nadal lift the trophy four times and Novak Djokovic lead Serbia to the title in 2010. Switzerland’s best since 1992 is their semi-final loss to Australia in 2003.
The Swiss fans have endured a frustrating wait since, with their team failing to win a World Group tie from 2005 to 2013, and Federer has often been painted as the villain for that lack of success.
His commitment to the Davis Cup has been questioned by teammates and, last year, Le Matin, a Swiss newspaper, asked readers to vote on whether Federer was a “traitor”.
“Roger has been saying for years that he wants to play the Davis Cup and it is important, but that’s apparently not the case,” Stan Wawrinka told swissinfo.ch in 2012. “It’s a shame how he interprets things to suit his own opinion. Davis Cup is not a priority for him at the moment.”
A look at Federer’s Davis Cup record would, however, suggests the criticism is a bit harsh. Since 1999, he has appeared in 25 of Switzerland’s 35 ties, winning 35 of his 42 singles matches. This year, he is 5-0 in singles.
Federer has missed the opening round of the Davis Cup in recent times, but so have most of the top stars because it starts four days after the Australian Open final. This year, however, he changed his mind after initially deciding against playing Davis Cup.
The emergence of Wawrinka, perhaps, is the reason. For once, Federer sees hope in his quest for Davis Cup glory. “We have the opportunity to write history,” Federer told the Davis Cup’s official website earlier in the year. “With the season that Stan and I have had, I think we are ready for the big occasion and we’re not going to shy away from it.”
The emotions in the French camp will be similar and the final promises to be a hard-fought thriller. But, more importantly, Federer’s appearance in the final could give the Davis Cup’s ailing profile a massive boost.
arizvi@thenational.ae
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