Tennis News

Swiss stars Roger Federer and Stan Wawrinka appear to be locked into a perpetual cycle of speculation following Roger’s withdrawal from the final of the year-end Championships in London with a back injury.

While few deny the legitimacy of Federer’s injury, some believe that there is more to the story than is being told by the athletes.

Following his semi-final encounter with fellow countryman Stan Wawrinka, it was reported that there was conflict of sorts between the teammates in the locker room, which sparked concern over their ability to play next weekend’s Davis Cup final.

The story circulating is that Federer’s wife, Mirka, was heckling Wawrinka in the third set of their semi-final on Saturday. It appears that Mirka’s “intense and even provocative support for her husband caused Wawrinka to complain about her behavior during the match.” French media appear to have captured Wawrinka saying “she did this at Wimbledon too.”

Even seven-time Grand Slam champion John McEnroe appeared on ESPN2 and suggested that there was certainly a rift of some sort between the two players that impacted the Sunday final.

“Something went on in the locker room,” McEnroe said on TV of the top two Swiss. “There was a long talk between the players that extended well into the night.”

While he may not have played a final to win the title in hard-fought fashion, world No. 1 Novak Djokovic was crowned champion at the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals when opponent Roger Federer withdrew from the tournament with a back injury.

Djokovic became the first person since Ivan Lendl to win three straight WTF titles. Illie Nastase is the only other player to achieve that, and did so over forty years ago.

“We always give 100 per cent,” said Djokovic. “I’m sure that if he could’ve played, he would’ve done. So I wish him the best in his recovery.

“I’m not one of those players that celebrates these particular wins, but I have to reflect on the whole season. This trophy is definitely the crown for all the achievements that I had this year. I owe the credit to my team, to all the people who supported me all the way through, and plenty of joy. I’m very happy to be able to stand here and finish with this trophy.”

After Djokovic was announced the champion, he awarded the crowd with a pro set exhibition match against British No. 1 Andy Murray. While the match will not count towards his 61-8 overall record, he still managed to end his 2014 season on a high note.

After a slow start at this year’s Barclays World Tour Finals, Bob and Mike Bryan cemented their fourth year-end championships in six attempts in London.

The title marks their 103rd career title as a pairing, and came following their competitive final against seventh seeds Ivan Dodig and Marcelo Melo. The American’s rallied to defeat the formidable pairing 6-7(5), 6-2, 10-7.

“This is considered the fifth slam, with the top eight teams in the world. To lose our first match and bounce back, barely qualify for the semi-finals, win today, was a great feeling.”

The legendary American pairing will end their season with ten titles and a record of 64-11.

“Looking back at the year, we’re very proud of the way it went,” said Mike Bryan. “If we had to pick one highlight during this great season, it would probably have to be the US Open. It was just a milestone we were shooting for. One of our big goals coming in the year was to try to hit 100 titles. We did it luckily at our home Grand Slam when there was a lot of talk about it. To finish year end No. 1 was a huge goal, we did that for the 10th season. That ranks right up there.”

When asked whether the pair could be expected to maintain their current pace over the next few years, the Bryans responded that they had made the necessary adjustments to prolong their careers.

“We feel the joints. We don’t bounce back as quick. We get massages now. I never got massages in my twenties. I’m gluten free now. I never thought I would be. He’s [Mike] been gluten free for 10 years. I had to resort to that because I was feeling the inflammation. We’re professional. We get the right sleep, eat the right foods, stay hydrated.”

Having contested matches against some of the greatest players to ever step on a tennis court, John McEnroe has some valuable insight into tennis’ current generation of stars.

McEnroe, a seven-time Grand Slam champion himself, was one of the four legends present at Novak Djokovic’s on-court ceremony on Friday afternoon in London, where he was crowned the year-end No. 1 for the third time in four years.

Only seven other players have ever achieved that feat, one of whom is McEnroe.

“That shows me that he has become one of the greats of all time. He is going to be there a couple more years. He looks so rock solid, it’s incredible,” said McEnroe.

The infamous Wimbledon champion even suggested that Djokovic could win his elusive French Open title and complete the Career Grand Slam in 2015.

“If Rafa is not healthy, that might open the door for him to win the French Open (the one grand slam to elude Djokovic). I would say the greatest players that ever lived are Roger (Federer), Rafa (Nadal), my idol Rod Laver and Pete Sampras.”

While McEnroe would not consider Djokovic above Federer and Nadal just yet, he has no doubt that he is in the Top 10 list of the greatest male tennis players – and rapidly rising through the ranks.

“I wouldn’t put him there yet but in the top 10 and maybe he is moving higher as each minute goes (by). The good news (is that) he is getting better and by the time I was his age I was getting worse!”

On Friday afternoon, ATP Executive Chairman and President Chris Kermode revealed that the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) would form two new advisory boards that will help “formulate a long term plan” focused on the development of the men’s tour.

Kermode, along with senior management and the ATP Board of Directors, brought in the help of business officials from a variety of fields including fashion, television and public relations to help formulate a new plan. The business board includes David Hill (Senior Vice President, 21 Century Fox), Matthew Freud (Chairman, Freuds), Tommy Hilfiger (Principal Designer, Tommy Hilfiger), and Robert Senior (CEO, Saatchi & Saatchi Fallon Group).

There will also be a new Legends Board, that will be comprised of John McEnroe, Boris Becker, Mats Wilander, Carlos Moya and Lleyton Hewitt. They will also serve in an advisory role and help develop a long-term plan for the ATP.

“It’s a very exciting time for men’s professional tennis. The sport is in great health and we’ve seen record audiences on site, on television and online. But it’s important that we continue to build and move forward,” said Kermode. “I believe these two advisory boards will provide an invaluable resource for the ATP as we continue to assess which direction to take the sport in the coming years. It’s important that we not only look to take into account the views from people outside the game, but also those of our former players who know our sport inside out. Both these boards will enable us to do that and I look forward to working with them as we evolve our long-term strategy aimed at harnessing the full potential of our sport.”

Both Advisory Boards are present in London, and will meet for the first time on Friday.

Less than an hour ahead of the highly anticipated year-end culmination at the Barclays World Tour Finals, six-time champion Roger Federer announced that he had been forced to withdraw from the final with a back injury he had sustained the previous evening against Wawrinka.

Federer, who came on court following the Bryan brothers’ title win, revealed that he was simply not willing to risk adding to the back injury sustained, particularly with Davis Cup action scheduled for next weekend.

“I am sorry to announce that I cannot play the finals tonight vs. Novak,” Federer posted on his official Facebook page. “I hurt my back late in the match yesterday against Stan. I am very disappointed and I hope to be feeling better soon. It’s been an extremely difficult decision because I love playing in London and the ATP World Tour Finals have been an absolute highlight of my career. Unfortunately, my back problem does not allow me to play right now. I hope all tennis fans and those involved in the event will understand.”

This marked the first time since 2008 that an ATP Final was contested by a walkover. This was also Federer’s walkover in his entire career.

Andy Murray stepped up to play a pro set against Novak Djokovic to the delight of the crowd.