In 1998, Roger Federer made his ATP Tour debut at the Gstaad Open in Switzerland.
Federer, 16 years old at the time, lost in the round of 32 to Lucas Arnold Ker, 6-4, 6-4.
Throughout his career, Federer was known for his cool, calm demeanour. However, perhaps to the surprise of many tennis fans, this demeanour was rarely witnessed early on in the Swiss star’s career.
Federer’s issues with his on-court emotions came to a head two years after his ATP Tour debut – following his first round loss to Franco Squillari at the 2001 Hamburg Masters.
What would have happened if Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner played at the same time as Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal?
After losing to the Argentinian, Federer smashed his racket in frustration.
Federer later admitted that this moment was pivotal in improving his emotional control on the court.
Roger Federer decided he was going to be ‘quiet and calm and concentrated’ after smashing his racket at the 2001 Hamburg Masters
In a 2017 interview with Inside Tennis, Federer was asked about his transformation from a player who was a ‘ball of stress’ early in his career, to an individual who represented calmness personified.
“It was a long process,” Federer began.
“In 2001 I lost to Franco Squillari on Court One in Hamburg. On match point, he passed me from way back. I volleyed and couldn’t see where the ball went. I looked down and I’d clogged the ball between the racket and the court. It was game, set and match, Squillari.
“So I took my racquet and just smashed it. It was like bang, bang, bang. I had a bad attitude. I was crying about playing so bad and how things were not great.
“That’s when I told myself, ‘I can’t take this attitude. If I keep playing like this for the next 10 years I’m going to go absolutely mental – I won’t be able to cope.’
“That’s when I decided I was going to be quiet and calm and concentrated. Then I made the quarters at the French – lost to [Alex] Corretja – and then made the quarters at Wimbledon. Then things got easy.”
The Swiss legend, a Davis Cup champion in 2013, quickly realised that he had over-corrected.
“But then what happened was that I realised I was too calm, too quiet. I hated myself for that,” Federer continued.
“I would hit a tweener winner and be like, ‘yeah, that’s normal.’ Then I would play the perfect point, the smash would come like one meter behind the net and I would miss it one meter into the fence and I’d be like, ‘that’s ok, normal.’
If you were in charge of tennis, what is the first rule you would change?
“I realized what I needed to create was fire and ice. Excitement for matches, for points – ice and calm in the right moments. That took me – I’m not kidding – a year and a half [to figure out].
“That’s why the Wimbledon win in ’03 came at the right time for me. Before that – mentally or physically – I wasn’t ready. In 2002 I won Hamburg, made the top 10, and was one of the favorites for the French.
“I was number six in the world, but then I lost in the first round. At Wimbledon, I lost first round after beating Pete [Sampras] the year before. I came back to the French the year after saying, ‘okay, I’ve got to figure it out now’ and lost first round.
“Then went to Wimbledon and finally won. I did it the hard way, which I guess was good for me. I remember how it feels losing in the first round at Slams.”
Federer’s complaint after losing to Squillari in 2001
After losing to Franco Squillari 6-3, 6-4, Federer took issue with one particular element of the match.
“The balls are way too heavy, as they were in Rome. I kept thinking that I couldn’t hit winners,” Federer said, as per swissinfo.ch.
Federer only had to wait one year before tasting success in Hamburg. In 2002, the Swiss maestro defeated Marat Safin 6–1, 6–3, 6–4 in the Hamburg Masters final to win his first title at the event.
Federer also won the tournament in 2004, 2005 and 2007. In the 2007 final, Federer defeated Rafael Nadal 2–6, 6–2, 6–0. The victory ended Nadal’s 81-match win-streak on clay.
“It’s absolutely a breakthrough. It will be interesting to see how we both react in the French Open,” Federer said after the match.
“For me it’s just nice to be playing well again. I’m feeling very good going into the French Open.
“It’s not that I was playing so badly but it’s my first clay-court title in a couple of years so that’s great.”
Federer was unable to usurp Nadal at the French Open in 2007, losing 6–3, 4–6, 6–3, 6–4 in the final.
