Why it was painful to watch Federer at Wimbledon 2016 semi-final

Roger Federer and irritation are alien to each other. That was till the evening of July 8.

A little while after the living legend of tennis lost a gut-wrenching five-setter to Milos Raonic, Federer was upset and even terse.

As he walked back from the Centre Court at Wimbledon to the locker room, there was a brief pause. He gazed at the audience which had been reduced to tears after the roller coaster ride. Those lucky enough to be sitting in the 22,000-seat arena thought they were seeing the Swiss Master for the last time.

Yet, the champion clarified at the post match conference in a cold way that retirement was not on his mind. He had a bad fall in the fifth set and hurt his operated knee.

Also read - Wimbledon 2016: How Milos Raonic outclassed Roger Federer

It's hard to recall when Federer slipped on his favourite surface -grass - a point he mentioned to the media in a morose way.

This slip had more than one meaning as the cerebral player has been craving for an eighth title at Wimbledon. It's certainly a feat he deserves to achieve but getting harder by the year.

The questions for Federer - from media, fans and critics - are not going to end. He is going to be 35 soon and even though he played ten sets in the quarter-final and semi-final, there is a lot for rival players to look at Federer's game and exploit.

By his own admission, Federer never imagined he would be so fit, returning after one more injury which saw him miss the French Open. Yet, fitness becomes a relative word as one is not just assessing own physical ability but how the rival on court can keep cranking up the game.

Raonic was in the zone, his ballistic serve troubling Federer, who usually returns the ball well on grass.

In rallies, Federer has dropped close to 20 per cent in his own ground stroke production and the famous serve deserted him badly in the semi-final.

Had it been one bad match on the ATP Tour, Federer could have told himself it doesn't matter as the Majors are more important.

If you go through the plethora of results which stand in the name of Federer since his early playing days, there is a clear trend now: he has lost big matches under pressure and not been able to win that one more Grand Slam title for a long time.

Ideally speaking, Federer should have won his eighth title on grass and signed out. That's what we expect from champions as the decision to say goodbye has to be timed well.

Then again, in a Wimbledon field where Rafael Nadal was absent because of injury and Novak Djokovic out in the first week, this was meant to be Federer's championship.

The smiling champion needs to realise if it's so hard for him and his support team to stomach a defeat, the fans feel even more dejected.

Also read - Thank you Roger Federer. Let the tennis play on

They may not openly weep at Centre Court in Wimbledon when Federer trips, but there is pain in the heart as watching your idol lose is very tough.

In any sport, and for every champion, retirement is something very special. At the same time, it's also very personal. When you play a team sport like cricket, hockey or football, you can still pull along for a while.

We saw Sachin Tendulkar extend his career when he was given a farewell series by the Indian cricket board in 2013. That allowed Sachin to play his 199th Test against West Indies in Kolkata and the 200th Test in Mumbai. Indeed, it was a great way to sign off!

To be sure, Federer cannot afford that luxury. Each match he plays on the Tour and the Grand Slams, he is judged not as a winner but a champion.

There is a difference between a winner and a champion and Federer, who has had such a dream career, would do well to realise when he delays retirement, it will look ugly if the stats reveal more defeats in the latter part of his career.

Then again, Federer needs to look at the man he succeeded in men's tennis - Pete Sampras. Since the day Pistol Pete won his last Grand Slam title at the US Open, he never returned.

That was the most fitting way to say goodbye and leave millions of your fans in tears. At least, those are tears of joy where fans can rewind and recall brilliant moments.

Federer should not try something which Andre Agassi did. He helped himself to a farewell tour, produced crap results and then went out not like a champion but a journeyman.

For me, a Federer fan first and professional sports writer later, watching him on Friday became painful.

(Courtesy of Mail Today.)