Federer's Schedule for 2014

[GameSetAndMath]

Federer's team usually release his schedule for the upcoming year by end of November of
previous year. So, we should know his first take on schedule for 2014 pretty soon.

Richard Krajicek, the tournament director (and a former player) of Rotterdam has
already announced that Roger has told him that he will NOT play there in 2014.

http://www.livetennis.it/post/160257/roger-federer-nel-2014-non-giochera-a-rotterdam/

I believe that he will continue to skip Miami. I wish, but do not expect, that he will play
in Monte Carlo.

At this time, it appears that the following 16 are for sure to be part of his initial
schedule.

1. Brisbane. 2. AO 3. Dubai 4. IW 5. Madrid 6. Rome 7. FO 8. Halle 9. Wimbledon
10. Canada 11. Cincy 12. USO 13. Shanghai 14 Basel 15 Paris 16. WTF (if qualified)

That will be 3 tournaments short of a full schedule. Hence he may throw in one or more
(at most 3) of the following: Davis Cup, Miami, Monte Carlo, Tokyo.

I also feel that if he has already qualified for WTF on or before the end of USO,
he will probably skip the entire Asian Circuit including Shanghai ATP 1000.

 

[DarthFed]

I don't think he should skip Miami, he should skip all clay except Madrid and RG. Roger needs to schedule his season to peak for Wimbledon and USO, and it is easy to overplay before Wimbledon especially. Even assuming he skips Monte Carlo he would be playing Madrid, Rome, RG and Halle in the 6-7 weeks before Wimbledon. That's a lot of tennis at his age, especially if he does fairly well at those events.

 

[GameSetAndMath]

Given that he says he is more interested in titles, I would not be surprised if he
throws in Estoril in the clay season. It is good to have your basic preparation and
confidence up (by playing in a small tourney and winning it) before playing with
big guys in ATP 1000 clay events.

If you are playing only in the two Mandatory Masters of Madrid and Rome and
if you get thrown out in one of them early, that is not enough prep for FO. I know
he does not plan on winning FO, but I think he is still #2 or at least #3 on clay.

 

[GameSetAndMath]

In 2013, he played in 17 tournaments. In the interview after WTF, he said he neither
plans to increase nor plans to decrease his schedule; but plans to change it somewhat
especially during the period between AO and FO.

Given that the 16 tournaments that I listed in my first post are almost a shoe-in,
I think he will throw in DC, but no other tournaments.

Anyway, we will know in a week.

I like the fact that Roger makes the complete set of tournaments that he
intends to play public and does so one month ahead. Of course, he may make
minor changes during the year; but at least we will know what he is generally
up to.

Unfortunately, many of the other top players don't even bother to announce
in advance what they plan to play in. Of course, it is not too hard to predict
as there are only 6 tournaments over which they have choice (4 GS and 8 MS
being mandatory) and many have set patterns.

 

[Murat Baslamisli]

The goal for Roger should be to be in top 4 when Wimbledon comes around. So Miami is where some extra points can be made. Madrid also has to be played because he can make some extra points since he lost early there last year. If he skips Rome, lots of points will be lost since he is defending finals points there, so I think he plays it.

I don't really know what Roger is thinking as far as his goals for the upcoming year, but if he has any intentions of winning one more slam, he has to get back to top 4 before Wimbledon since that is where he has the most chance, in my opinion.

 

[GameSetAndMath]

The goal for Roger should be to be in top 4 when Wimbledon comes around. So Miami is where some extra points can be made. Madrid also has to be played because he can make some extra points since he lost early there last year. If he skips Rome, lots of points will be lost since he is defending finals points there, so I think he plays it.

I don't really know what Roger is thinking as far as his goals for the upcoming year, but if he has any intentions of winning one more slam, he has to get back to top 4 before Wimbledon since that is where he has the most chance, in my opinion.

I strongly agree. Getting in to top 4 before Wimbledon starts should be his first
priority. To help achieve it, he should include at least one of Miami and Monte Carlo.
Miami is two weeks long. If you skip it, you get 2 weeks rest. Monte Carlo and Miami
gives the same amount of points, but Monte Carlo is just a week long. Also, no need
to worry about protecting his H2H against somebody, as he is losing to that somebody
even in hard courts these days.

To summarize, I prefer that he plays the 16 tournaments mentioned in my first
post and adds in Monte Carlo and Davis Cup. That is more than enough for him.

 

[GameSetAndMath]

Roger is a full 1585 points behind the current no. 4 Murray. That is NOT some small
difference. The chances of Roger getting into top 4 before Wimbledon does not look
very good.

It surely is not just on his racquet. He needs at least two of Beast, Andy and JMDP
falter terribly during the first 6 months of 2014. JMDP seems to be on the upswing
and probably will not falter. Beast is generally consistent, although he may lose
big points in FO this time as he was the finalist last time. Murray is the new
Murray who conquered Wimbledon, although it remains to be seen how he plays
after surgery. As his 2000 points from last Wimbledon will stay with him until this
Wimbledon, the chances of Fed overtaking him before Wimby 2014 is less.

Fed had a SF showing at AO and QF showing at FO. I don't think he can
do any better in these two in 2014. He had bad results only
in W and USO. So his best chances of increasing points are actually in the second half
of the year. So, even though he may finish 2014 in top 4, the chances of he
making it to top 4 before Wimbledon appears so dismal that he may even
give it up as a short term goal.

 

[Fiero425]

Roger is a full 1585 points behind the current no. 4 Murray. That is NOT some small
difference. The chances of Roger getting into top 4 before Wimbledon does not look
very good.

It surely is not just on his racquet. He needs at least two of Beast, Andy and JMDP
falter terribly during the first 6 months of 2014. JMDP seems to be on the upswing
and probably will not falter. Beast is generally consistent, although he may lose
big points in FO this time as he was the finalist last time. Murray is the new
Murray who conquered Wimbledon, although it remains to be seen how he plays
after surgery. As his 2000 points from last Wimbledon will stay with him until this
Wimbledon, the chances of Fed overtaking him before Wimby 2014 is less.

Fed had a SF showing at AO and QF showing at FO. He had bad results only
in W and USO. So his best chances of increasing points is in the second half
of the year. So, even though he may finish 2014 in top 4, the chances of he
making it to top 4 before Wimbledon appears so dismal that he may even
give it up as a short term goal.

Anything short of a plane crash with players ranked higher, Roger won't sniff #4; ever IMO! It has to happen sooner or later! Love the guy, labeled him The GOAT years ago after multiple major double at Wimbledon and USO! I think he overplayed to get back to #1 last year, but at his end, what choice did he have? I've been saying for years, he should stop playing clay altogether! It's just not likely he's going to win it or even make a final! Last season while testing a new racket he lost a couple matches to players I'd never heard of! You can say it was due to the racket change, but watching it, I've been thinking it has more to do with Roger's unwillingness to play more aggressively to end points sooner! He can not just sit back on the baseline wailing away on the ball with these kids for sustained lengths of time and extended rallies! He's being stubborn, thinking he can catch lightning in a bottle and win another major "his way!"

He's fooling himself and it will only get worse now that he's another year older and has rid himself of Annacone, an ex-player perfect for coaching his game! My thought all these years has been more than likely Paul tried to get Roger to play more aggressively, but Federer just doesn't do it enough! Even with his win at Wimbledon last year, his last "great" match win was at the FO in 2011, ending Nole's unbeaten streak! He served big and attacked relentlessly! It was the Roger we remember dominating the tour and even Rafa at the majors less than a decade ago! In the final he reverted back to old ways allowing Nadal to run him around like a turkey and he was done! Roger has to be more offensive with age creeping up on him! I see more upsets if he continues thinking "I can win this my way!"

 

[Kieran]

I'm not sure I buy into Roger's assertion that overplaying last year meant that this year would be an off-year and 2014 would contain another push. He often says stuff like this and people buy it, but I don't buy dodgy goods!

Why would he need this year to recover from last year? A whole year? :nono I can't accept his results are poor because he had a great 2012. It makes no sense to me...

 

[Front242]

Roger is a full 1585 points behind the current no. 4 Murray. That is NOT some small
difference. The chances of Roger getting into top 4 before Wimbledon does not look
very good.

It surely is not just on his racquet. He needs at least two of Beast, Andy and JMDP
falter terribly during the first 6 months of 2014. JMDP seems to be on the upswing
and probably will not falter. Beast is generally consistent, although he may lose
big points in FO this time as he was the finalist last time. Murray is the new
Murray who conquered Wimbledon, although it remains to be seen how he plays
after surgery. As his 2000 points from last Wimbledon will stay with him until this
Wimbledon, the chances of Fed overtaking him before Wimby 2014 is less.

Fed had a SF showing at AO and QF showing at FO. He had bad results only
in W and USO. So his best chances of increasing points is in the second half
of the year. So, even though he may finish 2014 in top 4, the chances of he
making it to top 4 before Wimbledon appears so dismal that he may even
give it up as a short term goal.

Anything short of a plane crash with players ranked higher, Roger won't sniff #4; ever IMO! It has to happen sooner or later! Love the guy, labeled him The GOAT years ago after multiple major double at Wimbledon and USO! I think he overplayed to get back to #1 last year, but at his end, what choice did he have? I've been saying for years, he should stop playing clay altogether! It's just not likely he's going to win it or even make a final! Last season while testing a new racket he lost a couple matches to players I'd never heard of! You can say it was due to the racket change, but watching it, I've been thinking it has more to do with Roger's unwillingness to play more aggressively to end points sooner! He can not just sit back on the baseline wailing away on the ball with these kids for sustained lengths of time and extended rallies! He's being stubborn, thinking he can catch lightning in a bottle and win another major "his way!"

He's fooling himself and it will only get worse now that he's another year older and has rid himself of Annacone, an ex-player perfect for coaching his game! My thought all these years has been more than likely Paul tried to get Roger to play more aggressively, but Federer just doesn't do it enough! Even with his win at Wimbledon last year, his last "great" match win was at the FO in 2011, ending Nole's unbeaten streak! He served big and attacked relentlessly! It was the Roger we remember dominating the tour and even Rafa at the majors less than a decade ago! In the final he reverted back to old ways allowing Nadal to run him around like a turkey and he was done! Roger has to be more offensive with age creeping up on him! I see more upsets if he continues thinking "I can win this my way!"

Don't forget that even playing crap this year he made the final of Rome. Not bad for playing crap. Imagine if he played well. And he didn't play endless rallies at Rome either.

 

[GameSetAndMath]

That is the point. Despite all these, he managed to finish at #6. No reason that he
cannot make it back into top 4, by end of 2014. I just don't see it happening before
Wimbledon 2014.

 

[Fiero425]

Roger is a full 1585 points behind the current no. 4 Murray. That is NOT some small
difference. The chances of Roger getting into top 4 before Wimbledon does not look
very good.

It surely is not just on his racquet. He needs at least two of Beast, Andy and JMDP
falter terribly during the first 6 months of 2014. JMDP seems to be on the upswing
and probably will not falter. Beast is generally consistent, although he may lose
big points in FO this time as he was the finalist last time. Murray is the new
Murray who conquered Wimbledon, although it remains to be seen how he plays
after surgery. As his 2000 points from last Wimbledon will stay with him until this
Wimbledon, the chances of Fed overtaking him before Wimby 2014 is less.

Fed had a SF showing at AO and QF showing at FO. He had bad results only
in W and USO. So his best chances of increasing points is in the second half
of the year. So, even though he may finish 2014 in top 4, the chances of he
making it to top 4 before Wimbledon appears so dismal that he may even
give it up as a short term goal.

Anything short of a plane crash with players ranked higher, Roger won't sniff #4; ever IMO! It has to happen sooner or later! Love the guy, labeled him The GOAT years ago after multiple major double at Wimbledon and USO! I think he overplayed to get back to #1 last year, but at his end, what choice did he have? I've been saying for years, he should stop playing clay altogether! It's just not likely he's going to win it or even make a final! Last season while testing a new racket he lost a couple matches to players I'd never heard of! You can say it was due to the racket change, but watching it, I've been thinking it has more to do with Roger's unwillingness to play more aggressively to end points sooner! He can not just sit back on the baseline wailing away on the ball with these kids for sustained lengths of time and extended rallies! He's being stubborn, thinking he can catch lightning in a bottle and win another major "his way!"

He's fooling himself and it will only get worse now that he's another year older and has rid himself of Annacone, an ex-player perfect for coaching his game! My thought all these years has been more than likely Paul tried to get Roger to play more aggressively, but Federer just doesn't do it enough! Even with his win at Wimbledon last year, his last "great" match win was at the FO in 2011, ending Nole's unbeaten streak! He served big and attacked relentlessly! It was the Roger we remember dominating the tour and even Rafa at the majors less than a decade ago! In the final he reverted back to old ways allowing Nadal to run him around like a turkey and he was done! Roger has to be more offensive with age creeping up on him! I see more upsets if he continues thinking "I can win this my way!"

Don't forget that even playing crap this year he made the final of Rome. Not bad for playing crap. Imagine if he played well. And he didn't play endless rallies at Rome either.

So did Becker and Sampras; once in '94! Happens! :lolz: :laydownlaughing

 

[GameSetAndMath]

It should be kept in mind that neither Murray nor JMDP played in FO 2013. So,
whatever they get in FO 2014 would be an addition with no subtraction. Also, JMDP
flamed out early in AO 2013 and is expected to much better this time. So, the chances
of Fed getting back to top four before Wimby 2014 looks bleak.

 

[tented]

The goal for Roger should be to be in top 4 when Wimbledon comes around. So Miami is where some extra points can be made. Madrid also has to be played because he can make some extra points since he lost early there last year. If he skips Rome, lots of points will be lost since he is defending finals points there, so I think he plays it.

I don't really know what Roger is thinking as far as his goals for the upcoming year, but if he has any intentions of winning one more slam, he has to get back to top 4 before Wimbledon since that is where he has the most chance, in my opinion.

In which case he should also play MC, and get even more points to help secure a Top 4 ranking pre-Wimbledon. Of course that also means he'll be playing even more, which could also be bad.

It's a Catch-22: he needs points in order to be in the best position for Wimbledon, but in order to get those points he could potentially hurt his chances at Wimbledon.

 

[GameSetAndMath]

The goal for Roger should be to be in top 4 when Wimbledon comes around. So Miami is where some extra points can be made. Madrid also has to be played because he can make some extra points since he lost early there last year. If he skips Rome, lots of points will be lost since he is defending finals points there, so I think he plays it.

I don't really know what Roger is thinking as far as his goals for the upcoming year, but if he has any intentions of winning one more slam, he has to get back to top 4 before Wimbledon since that is where he has the most chance, in my opinion.

In which case he should also play MC, and get even more points to help secure a Top 4 ranking pre-Wimbledon. Of course that also means he'll be playing even more, which could also be bad.

It's a Catch-22: he needs points in order to be in the best position for Wimbledon, but in order to get those points he could potentially hurt his chances at Wimbledon.

I too initially agreed with Murat saying that getting into top 4 before Wimbledon should
be his priority. However, after looking at the numbers both his and of players ahead of him,
it looks it would be herculean task to get into top 4 before Wimbledon 2014. Hence, I would
give that up as a goal for Fed and would just be happy if he could peak for Wimbledon.

After all Rafa won FO in 2013 with a seeding of 5. Now it is Fed's turn to prove that
he can win Wimby from an uncomfortable initial position

I still suggest that he skip Miami, play MC and DC in addition to 16 in OP.

 

[Kieran]

If Murray doesn't play Oz it increases Roger's chances of getting into the top four before Wimbo...

 

[Fiero425]

If Murray doesn't play Oz it increases Roger's chances of getting into the top four before Wimbo...

That's a big "if!" Seems as if Nadal's the only one that willingly skips a major among the top tier of players! Surgeries these days don't cut open a complete joint anymore; usually more precise with a small incision used to repair damage which aids in the healing process! He already missed the FO; can't afford to lose more points if at all possible!

 

[Kieran]

Seems as if Nadal's the only one that willingly skips a major among the top tier of players!

When did Rafa "willingly" skip a major?

 

[Riotbeard]

Seems as if Nadal's the only one that willingly skips a major among the top tier of players!

When did Rafa "willingly" skip a major?

2000 Wimbledon. I heard he didn't even try to enter, and he has never bothered to explain why he skipped this event.

 

[DarthFed]

Roger has very little chance to get to the top 4 before Wimbledon. For him it is all about scheduling to peak for Wimbledon and USO. If he has to face all 3 of the elite at Wimbledon forget about it, but if he survives to the semis and has to face 2 then watch out.