Roger Federer has been the most successful man in the history of the Wimbledon Championships, yet, all could have been much different, had he lost one important match.
Early on in his tennis career, it was clear that the Swiss player was special. However, as every up-and-coming player, he felt the nerves, sometimes also maybe the pressure, and with the inexperience added, winning a first major is never easy, even for a talented player.
That happened for Federer at the 2003 Wimbledon Championships, when he beat Mark Philippoussis in the final, winning 7–6(5), 6–2, 7–6(3). It was a dominant final performance by the Swiss player, who lost only one set in the whole tournament.
Still, there was one challenge who he thought could have stopped him at SW19 in 2003. In the semi-final of the tournament, Federer played against Andy Roddick, who he bested in three sets 7-6(6), 6-3, 6-3.
He looked back on that performance during a recent interview with Tennis Channel's Steve Weissman. Federer recently launched a new collection of his tennis rackets with Wilson, and Roddick recently switched from Babolat to the racket brand that the Swiss Maestro has been using, which prompted Weissman to ask a funny question.
"Do you think maybe one of those Wimbledon finals would have gone differently if [Roddick] had had a Wilson in his hands?"
While obviously in a light-hearted tone, knowing that the brand of the racket likely did not impact either player's performance, the 20-time Grand Slam champion gave it a proper thought, recollecting that 2003 Wimbledon semi-final.
"I think he probably would have beaten me in the 2003 Wimbledon semis."
Had he lost in the 2003 Wimbledon Championships semi-final, Federer admitted that he would have probably doubted his abilities of winning the grass-court major, so in a sense, his win over Roddick was history-changing.
"And then what would have happened is, then I would have probably thought that I can’t win Wimbledon—and then I never would have won Wimbledon. So he had a lot to do with it if he would have changed to Wilson much earlier. He could have changed all of history!"
After that semi-final, the two would have met three more times at Wimbledon, every time in the final. In 2004, the American lost 6–4, 5–7, 6–7(3), 4–6, in 2005, he lost 2–6, 6–7(2), 4–6, and in 2009, Roddick was beaten in a brutal five-setter 7–5, 6–7(6), 6–7(5), 6–3, 14–16.
Despite their rivalry, in which the Swiss player dominated, it's clear that the two kept a very good relationship, as Federer had a smile on his face when talking about the 41-year-old American.
"Andy is a great guy he knows it. He's the best and I love his podcast as well and I want him to do commentating. He's so fun to listen to he's so knowledgeable and always enjoyed having him around on the tour and stuff so whenever I hear Andy Roddick, I get a smile on my face."