Safin was such a beast of a tennis player. This is pretty much prime Federer and Safin in a wheelchair after all his injuries, but he still was a threat and made Roger up his game.
this isn't really prime Federer so you know, Federer here is lacking the power, he's not moving as he used too, he was coming from mono and back pain, he looks weaker than he normally does. he still found no problem reaching the final and dismantling his opponents even on a slow court.
I miss Safin. He was such a fun player to watch. His anger is not like Kyrgios anger. It was entertaining. When his game is on....it's on. He could beat anybody. It's a shame he had to quit the game so early.
+unowen7591 I definitely agree. Nowadays, tennis players do anger wrong. Kyrgios is just disrespectful and Djokovic is obnoxious in how he acts like everyone is out to get him. I feel like Federer vs Safin AO 2005 was a perfect example of how to be competitive yet still respectful in tennis. Yes, Safin was disrespectful as times, but he channeled his aggression so effectively over the years.
Does anyone remember Safin's famous Wimbledon press conference meltdown where he cracked jokes about the strawberries and cream? I believe this came after yet another dissapointing loss and he said that he won't play Wimbledon anymore. It was a hilarious segment but very sad because you could hear the vulnerability and despair in his voice.
Yeah, he's just like you on UA-cam Comments. You're such a fun commenter to watch coz your anger entertains. And when you're on, you can beat almost anybody, except me. It's a shame you're quitting UA-cam so early; I hope you come out of retirement sometime, like Hingis.
@@annewalden3795 he was one of my favorite players. I liked him for his swagger and his talent. He’s one of those guys that could beat anyone on a given day, and people hated facing him in grand slams. I am happy he was able to string together a successful two week span, twice, to win two grand slams. There really aren’t many players like him.
I'm glad you enjoyed it! If you go to my channel, I reuploaded highlights of this match in slightly better quality with a smoother framerate, it also has more points and replays as well!
Every Federer versus Safin match has 99.9% of chances of being amazing. Marat's style of play so powerful and sometimes with a crasp of elegance, and Federer...my god. Most of the shots he seems to do without sweating, are just wonderful, makes you gasp all the way, and he has at least 1 or 2 of those at every game you watch of him. Few players can match the pure talent of tennis this man posess
Yeah, Safin is one of the few tennis players that he really liked and liked playing against, fun tennis all around. he was an amazing tennis player, too bad he couldn't handle the pressure, the commitment and training that tennis required.
Safin's backhand is really something else. Arguably one of the best modern era two handed backhands, along with Nalbandian. Anyone wanting to learn how to do a two handed backhand should watch Safin. He hits it so cleanly too.
None of those hit backhands as powerful and as fast Safin's, Nalbandian included. Safin doesn't have their mechanical simplicity, but at it's best its the most dangerous of them.
Irfan Khalis Yeah ... so when a youngster learns how to hit a backhand, they'll want to learn from the 4 dudes who can hit it _in_ the court hard 65 times out of 100, rather than the 1 dude who hit it in super-hard 30 times out of 100, and the other 70 times out. Consistency trumps the spectacular.
Safin is one of the most talent player. One of the best beckhends ever, like Agassi, Nole but his was real weapon. Miss him so much. If not the mental problems i think he could be one of the GOAT. He should be…. And he was one of the not many players who know how to play Federer that days. And Roger was like godlike mode we all know. Sad….. and…… i played and train in Spain in Valencia academy by the way)), i knew Marat personally. He was really good guy in “real” life.
not sure if people notice but safin must have either had Adidas custom make him baggy apparel or he picked XXXXXL size of their current ones. All the players these days (indeed starting from around 06/07) rock tights essentially. This is small detail, but something about the late 90s / early 2000s "looser" apparel made the sport look so much more casual. Miss that.
Last 1-2 years it's getting ridiculous. We're getting back to 70s-style short shorts. When Nadal first hit the scene he was wearing shorts that went half-way down his shins, now they're half-way up his thighs.
People always gave Safin crap about his mental game, but dealing with injuries is just about the hardest mental hurdle any player can deal with. He really deserves more credit for playing with chronic knee problems.
This match was closer than what the scoreline depicts. The only difference was that Safin couldn't take the few BP chances he had, while Fed took his opportunities without hesitation. That 3rd set featured amazing tennis.
Always when I watch this match I remebered the gold period of tennis and then I think and said to myself "like in the old days". Federer is my idol and I beliave he can do it again.
Just finished watching the 2005 AO semi highlights and moved to this video. The string technology changed the game radically in just 4 years time. The power these guys have in their rackets just doesn't allow for net play anymore. I think the court was just as fast in 2009 as it was in 2005, but the racket tech changes the tennis completely.
The surface was switched in 2008 from Rebound Ace to Plexicushion, so there definitely was a slight change to the court speed. Rebound Ace was definitely faster, as most the players said when they first tried the new Plexicushion courts in 2008.
Beechaii2 I thought the initial impression was that the 2008+ courts played faster? I could definitely be wrong, but Rebound Ace was a fairly slow court, especially when it was hot, because it would really grab the ball. Rebound Ace also had a fairly high bounce for a hard court, hence the name.
Nah, even the players complained it was slower. I'm no expert, but even in the matches these days, its visible that the court slows the balls a lot. Apparently, there's some clay under the surface of Plexicushion.
the courts were differently slower and I understand why they did it that's why sluggers and pushers were able to do better at hard courts, it's all about marketing and money.
Federer's weakness is he didn't embrace this tech change which cause him to fall behind Nadal and Nole. They play with latest racquet sizes, keto diet and statistics training. He stubbornly believe in S&V and old tactics.
Watching how well Roger played this match makes Nadal's victory in the final all that more remarkable... especially after Verdasco took Nadal to 5 sets in the semi the day before the final!
Federer played against the history that day, unfortunatly for him, was crushed by the pressure of victory at any cost, everyone thought that he had to win to reach Sampras at 14 Slam. Roger had only 52% of first serve in the entire match. The average career is 63%, to give an idea of the deficit performance on serve. Nadal obviously played very well, but Federer threw away the game literally, like the first 2 sets of Wimbledon 2008, he was probably still shocked by the bad defeat suffered at Roland Garros 1 month before.
Aleksa Teemo That tournament was the first time I was truly amazed at Nadal’s fitness. Just as Fed raised the bar for skill in the sport, Nadal raised the bar for fitness in the sport. Just insane being able to play those 2 classics back to back.
@@aleksamilosevic8792 Yeah Nadal was playing amazing that final but Federer was struggling with the nerves and expectations like Novak was at the US Open this year. Federer couldn't find a first serve to save his life (only 50%) in that final and his bp conversion was at a low, which is also partially due to Nadal of course.
A nicely measured highlights reel, after all, tennis is a show not just a collection of winners. And rofl at the bogan yelling out "Suck it up Princess"
god, the Safin DTL backhand, the effortless power, and the hilarious anger fits. Miss Safin. On his day, one of the few players who could really take it to Fed.
I'm sorry but Roger's shot at 2:30 just absolutely blows my mind. To have such little time to react to even get a racket on that ball, much less do THAT... Just wow. 4:24... You just kinda knew he'd do that didn't you... 12:52 Just - somebody record that shot!!! 15:48
Yeah 2:30 was a sweet shot, and single handed backhand winners are always awesome to watch. 4:24 is a vintage Fed shot, he struggles with the running forehand these days, so it's going to be very rare we see that crazy angled forehand again ;)
Federer's incredulity toward Shot Spot in the early days is hilarious. Go watch Federer nearly losing his sanity during the Wimbledon 2008 final at all the close calls that went in Nadal's favor. He sounds like he's going to cry (see: "It's KILLING me". Nowadays, players don't think twice, but in 2008-2009, Federer and other players weren't quite willing to believe the tech over their own eyes. Funny how far we've come. Now, majors are getting rid of line judges, altogether.
You can cite string technology, court progression, etc. All of those things are true in relation to how this match is different than their epic 2005 encounter down under. BUT the biggest difference in this match is that Federer's movement and court positioning were immensely improved while Safin's was diminished a considerable bit compared to 4 years previously.
Derrick Roberts Federer was definitely quicker in 2005, but the difference was certainly a lot less dramatic than it was for Safin, who was never the same really after that Australian Open Slam win.
***** I would compare the Aussie 05 Safin performance to that of Del Potro Us Open 2009. Amazing ball striking, power tennis but afterwards injury and inconsistency.
+Derrick Roberts You can tell that the biggest difference is that Federer improved his backhand and his 2nd serve. And, although his first serve power and his movement diminished a bit, his smarter placement of the serve and better hitting with the backhand made him a better player. He did learn from his constituents.
look at how hard these guys are hitting the ball. As good as anything we see these days, maybe better. I loved watching these two play. Too bad safin retired too early.
safin when he came back, he calmed it down a lot. and he just had that charisma (sometimes i swear he would break his racquet on purpose just to please the fans). i remember watching this game. i was rooting for him. its too bad he didn't try harder in his career, he could have had more than just 2 slams.
Safin was one of the few players that could just flip a switch and go god mode, that’s along with federer, djokovic, nadal, Del Potro, wawrinka, and soderling
He was drinking a bottle of vodka every night and went home with 2-3 girls every night. He said he would wake up with 2 hours of sleep and alcohol still in his breath and went and won several grand slams like this. Pity the talent.
It's hard to admit Federer is in decline, but it's so much more evident after watching this. He's just so confident, his shot selection so stable and solid, and he moves with such sureness in his stride.
Safin was also waaay past it at this point. He never really recovered from his knee injury, one of the reasons he retired early. He played ok in this match, particularly the 3rd set, but you can see how bad his movement and forehand are, nowhere near to where it was before he had his injury problems. Also remember he was 2 points away from stealing the 3rd set breaker. Federer played well in this tournament. Shame he lost in the final.
@@matteo964 Of course he deserved it, he did win it. That being said, Nadal's own Uncle Toni admitted Roger should have taken it in 4-sets and mentally wasn't tough that day. Part of the drill, have to finish the job.
@@chriswells5983well he's right, people forget that Federer was under a lot of pressure that day and still suffered from back problems and he should have never lost that match but pressure can be crippling, which Nadal and Nole have experienced at some point too since they were always the underdogs and people think of them as more resilient than Federer and can handle pressure better which ofcourse they were proven wrong.
this just goes to show you that Roger kept on growing as a player and working hard, Safin has spectacular talent, but he worked hard for his two slams and partied in between a lot....
Honestly, I feel like foot faults caused by starting past the center line should warrant a let instead of a foot fault. Realistically, players are not intentionally trying to touch or cross the line, they are just trying to serve the ball. I mean, the center line rule is the worst, because players are not being notified pre-service that they are committing a fault before they even start their motion. If you are doomed to fault before you even swing at the ball, is that really fair when a linesman could respectively warn you that you are crossing the line? I feel like players should at least be allowed to know when they are committing foot faults before they even start their motion. Walking onto the line while serving is a different thing entirely (though they also sometimes come up at the worst moments). And the foot fault calls can't always be taken to be 100% accurate because linesmen often mistake calls. They can obviously choose to avoid making calls on the closer foot faults and only call the obvious ones, but then are they truly doing their job? The fairest way to do this is to simply make foot faults be considered lets unless the serve is considered out. In this case, the returner really loses nothing, because an out serve is still a fault, and a good serve is considered a let, meaning they would get about a 30% chance of the opponent missing the serve and giving them a second serve (assuming a good first serve percentage). Though, players who repeatedly foot fault should be given a penalty, say anything past 2 or 3 foot faults receives a point penalty (or a fault). This way, players don't abuse the system and merely have it as a fallback in case they accidentally make a foot fault, which is usually the case.
Oreoclan At the very least players should be able to challenge a foot fault. I remember back in the day the had cameras right at the baseline to show if a ball landed on the line or not. It wasn't used by the umpire to change a bad call, I think it was only for TV. But that same technology could be added in the Grand Slams. In the case of Safin, he would had challenged the call, and if the replay showed his foot past the line, then he would know for sure he did a foot fault, and not lose his concentration any further. I think that the way Safin foot faulted shouldn't be a fault. In my opinion, a player should be on the correct side of the centerline just as he goes up for the serve, NOT when he sets his stance. Safin's serve motion makes him first go back with his right leg, but then he moves it forward. And as he goes for the serve swing, that's when the feet position should be considered for a foot fault. But umpiring it this way is a bit more complex. It is simpler just to make sure the player doesn't cross the other side at any point of the serve motion. So this rule is here to stay. Thus, at the very least, extend the challenge system to foot faults (which irk players big time), and double bounces. Just put a small screen TV with the chair umpire with live action feed so he can overrule himself according to a "second opinion". Players would be able to challenge more things than just in/out calls. It's good for the game, good for the players.
What the fuck are you people saying. Telling that they are crossing the centre line before committing the foot fault? What logic is that? It's just the same as removing the foot faults entirely from the game. What is that other guy talking about? It was a bad timmed foot fault? What the hell is that supposed to mean? He is trying to say if you are 2 sets to love down then be lenient on player. People talking utter rubbish here.
@@sasookyeah I tend to agree since his back problems really did affect his form and shotmaking beyond those years and he only could hold his top form for like one or two slams at the time not like his prime years.
Qué bello tenis hacían ambos. Tan limpio, ajustado, brillante... Cada cual jugaba con su "espejo". Dos caballeros del deporte. Y... sin gemidos. [What beautiful tennis they both played. So clean, tight, shiny... Both played with the "mirror" of him. Two gentlemen of sport. And... no moaning].
Had injury, lack of self confidence not creeped in ,safin was the one guy who could have matched federer shot for shot on any surface . this should have been the marquee rivalry for a long time if safin stayed injury free.
Sometimes I think Safin had too much pride, and wanted the game to be pretty. Meaning he went for an aesthetic course of a point versus a way to win anyway possible. Good for pretty, bad for winning. Someone talked about Sofia Polgar playing chess like that.
Polarcupcheck Safin had little belief in himself for a while so I believe he over acts with anger to make up for it. He just needed more confidence in himself and he could have won this match. Federer has the perfect balance of everything and that is why he wins. As the spectator said 'suck it up princess' although probably a shitty thing to hear when you struggle with self confidence as it is.
That 'pretty' tennis you're talking about is just shot making aggressive tennis. Roddick, Blake, Federer, Safin, Gonzalez were part of the 2000-2007 era of shot Making tennis, fast courts and fast balls and players won by hitting winners and not Defensive play. It isn't a high percentage game and that's why most of these players were never consistent enough to win slams. To Safin's credit he won AO 2005
Nice observation. Despite his woebegone affect, I appreciated Safin. He was a supremely talented athlete but maybe less of a tennis competitor. Federer is both, I guess.
No, no. His game was too low margin and he paid for it by not developing the higher margin component. He knew he wasn't good enough by himself. It's like Kyrgios now. They pretend they don't care, but in truth they know they aren't good enough for the top. Playing low margin tennis is not a viable long term strategy. You need high margin shots and defence. You need to balance fight and flight. Most of Fed's generation didn't have this which is why most people call them a relatively weaker generation.
Safin: He had more talent than Federer, IMO or anyone else that played the game.... He beat Pete Sampras in 2000 and classic Federer in 2005. If he had Pete's mental strength or Fed's cool under pressure, he would have been one of the greatest players of all time.
yeah, the mental part is so, so important at the very top. You could say that sentence about many, many players. But yeah, Safin had an amazing arsenal.
Whoever says Federer had an "easy" era has got to see this. In those days of faster courts, many of today's top draw would have wilted and withered. Alas.
Unlikely. This Court Speed Conspiracy is only feeble hearsay at best. There is no proof that courts were faster in the 1990's and early 2000's, as Court Pace Index wasn't even devised before 2000, and it wasn't consistently divulged from 2000-11.
You can tell by Jim Courier's reactions that this was the time Federer came in and just took tennis to a whole another level. This is why he is better than Djokovic and Nadal. Even now, Djokovic is only beating Federer in very close sets, he hasn't increased the level of the game as much as Federer did when he came in. Doesn't really matter at the end of the day...
@Logic M no logic in that. A younger federer would absolutely crush djokovic EVERY time. Even now, in January Djokovic choked against an injured Federer, and generally only beats in him in very close sets 7-6, 6-4, etc etc.
Not sure what u guys are smoking. Djokovic level in 2011 was something that the tennis world never seen. Even Nadal said that. You cant compare Federer to Djokovic , one farmed good players to reach titles the other farmed the best players to reach titles.
@@steffot8468 Give me a break. Djokovic winning in arguably a very weak era the last five years against the likes of Berrettini, Anderson, Tsitsipas, Thiem, Medvedev, del Potro and a 35+ year Federer who still had match points against him and constantly takes him to 5 sets (That's 10 grand slams against weak opponents). + despite winning so much, constantly has lapses in confidence, has embarrassing outbursts and even more hideous celebrations.
@@streamingeagle1 check who was federer playing when he won his first GS and in the next 5 years. Also check what ranking was his finalist vs the rankings of Federer hate him how much you want he is 🐐
Ugh. This was not the one I was looking for. Have to go look at the one where Safin pounds Federer. When Federer is on his knees on matchpoint..... Safin was such a great player, so good on the eyes.
Beechaii2 that was back in the day though. When he was more raw and didn’t mind doing things the dirty way. If he had kept that attitude, he could have beaten Nadal more.
Safin had the talent but lacked mentality. He also had a playing style that suited Federer. His shots weren't long enough (lacked depth). He had a great start during his early years as a pro but rapidly vanished as Hewitt and all the others of his generation. The Weak Generation.
That could be a factor as he's one of the bigger guys on the tour, but he did have a knee injury from a few years back that he never quite recovered from.
LOL did anyone catch at 15:22 some guy in the stands yells to Safin, "suck it up princess."
Yeah haha really funny xD
+StanChan And at 14:51 the linesman. Dat face...lel
StanChan lol yeah that's great
what are you talking about jzargo/.
The guy's like :/
Safin was such a beast of a tennis player. This is pretty much prime Federer and Safin in a wheelchair after all his injuries, but he still was a threat and made Roger up his game.
this isn't really prime Federer so you know, Federer here is lacking the power, he's not moving as he used too, he was coming from mono and back pain, he looks weaker than he normally does. he still found no problem reaching the final and dismantling his opponents even on a slow court.
Miss Marat safin. Great player. Always watching his play
I miss Safin. He was such a fun player to watch. His anger is not like Kyrgios anger. It was entertaining. When his game is on....it's on. He could beat anybody.
It's a shame he had to quit the game so early.
+unowen7591 I definitely agree. Nowadays, tennis players do anger wrong. Kyrgios is just disrespectful and Djokovic is obnoxious in how he acts like everyone is out to get him. I feel like Federer vs Safin AO 2005 was a perfect example of how to be competitive yet still respectful in tennis. Yes, Safin was disrespectful as times, but he channeled his aggression so effectively over the years.
+Matt Clark their was a clay court match where federer vs safin and they were both fumming, i was rofl
Does anyone remember Safin's famous Wimbledon press conference meltdown where he cracked jokes about the strawberries and cream? I believe this came after yet another dissapointing loss and he said that he won't play Wimbledon anymore. It was a hilarious segment but very sad because you could hear the vulnerability and despair in his voice.
Yeah, he's just like you on UA-cam Comments.
You're such a fun commenter to watch coz your anger entertains.
And when you're on, you can beat almost anybody, except me.
It's a shame you're quitting UA-cam so early; I hope you come out of retirement sometime, like Hingis.
Well it's good to see you don't let that cat get away with anything...even a year afterwards.
Marat Safin easily was one of the most talented players ever. Always fun to watch.
@MUFC what was the point you're trying to make?
Yes and he is one of the candidates for having underachieved the most relative to his talent. He should have dominated and didn't.
If he didn’t drink alcohol and visit the brothel every day, he easily could have won 15-20 grand slams.
@@iwishiwasthomasshelby I think the alcohol and an unhealthy diet were mainly responsible for his relative under achievement .
@@annewalden3795 he was one of my favorite players. I liked him for his swagger and his talent. He’s one of those guys that could beat anyone on a given day, and people hated facing him in grand slams. I am happy he was able to string together a successful two week span, twice, to win two grand slams. There really aren’t many players like him.
Federer's game is so beautiful and intelligent, unlike anyone else. Safin was a beast, badass talent but the frustration was understandable.
Gotta love safins backhand. Just the way he pulls it off
Marat always will be in my hearts
Thank you for this, really appreciate your videos, the quality was great x
I'm glad you enjoyed it! If you go to my channel, I reuploaded highlights of this match in slightly better quality with a smoother framerate, it also has more points and replays as well!
Every Federer versus Safin match has 99.9% of chances of being amazing. Marat's style of play so powerful and sometimes with a crasp of elegance, and Federer...my god. Most of the shots he seems to do without sweating, are just wonderful, makes you gasp all the way, and he has at least 1 or 2 of those at every game you watch of him. Few players can match the pure talent of tennis this man posess
best shot of the match at 13:34 Laser accuracy.
Just a reminder what a great player Safin was. Just wow!
8:25 its quite rare to see roger smile and act like that in the middle of the match. Marat must be a great and fun person...
They're friends to this day
Yeah, Safin is one of the few tennis players that he really liked and liked playing against, fun tennis all around. he was an amazing tennis player, too bad he couldn't handle the pressure, the commitment and training that tennis required.
Wow. Fed and Marat played some of the greatest tennis matches in history.
what a point to finish a match! outstanding roger!
Safin's backhand is really something else. Arguably one of the best modern era two handed backhands, along with Nalbandian. Anyone wanting to learn how to do a two handed backhand should watch Safin. He hits it so cleanly too.
Agassi, Djokovic, Nishikori, and Murray are better.
To Nalbandian, I agree--right up there with Agassi.
None of those hit backhands as powerful and as fast Safin's, Nalbandian included. Safin doesn't have their mechanical simplicity, but at it's best its the most dangerous of them.
Irfan Khalis
Yeah ... so when a youngster learns how to hit a backhand, they'll want to learn from the 4 dudes who can hit it _in_ the court hard 65 times out of 100, rather than the 1 dude who hit it in super-hard 30 times out of 100, and the other 70 times out.
Consistency trumps the spectacular.
My point still stands, Safin's problem is mental, nt technical. In technical terms, Safin hits a better backhand than all those bar Nalbandian.
Safin surprised me. I don't think I've seen him,play so well. A great competitor!
Safin is one of the most talent player. One of the best beckhends ever, like Agassi, Nole but his was real weapon. Miss him so much. If not the mental problems i think he could be one of the GOAT. He should be…. And he was one of the not many players who know how to play Federer that days. And Roger was like godlike mode we all know. Sad….. and…… i played and train in Spain in Valencia academy by the way)), i knew Marat personally. He was really good guy in “real” life.
Two of my favourite players in the men's game!
Federer, Safin and Nalbandian are the best.
@@cerphdefinitely no one questions that, but we can't ignore other fun players with amazing playing style. man that era was full of them. miss that.
not sure if people notice but safin must have either had Adidas custom make him baggy apparel or he picked XXXXXL size of their current ones. All the players these days (indeed starting from around 06/07) rock tights essentially. This is small detail, but something about the late 90s / early 2000s "looser" apparel made the sport look so much more casual. Miss that.
Last 1-2 years it's getting ridiculous. We're getting back to 70s-style short shorts. When Nadal first hit the scene he was wearing shorts that went half-way down his shins, now they're half-way up his thighs.
I definitely miss the baggy clothes era. Not just in tennis but just in general as well. Everything is all about hugging your skin these days
Safin used XXXL t-shirts here because he was fat.
I do remember Safin being one of the last to hang on to the baggy clothes.
@@jameswalker6864 Fat is something else.
I loved Safin and his game, to bad this was there final meeting, he was one of the only ones who could nuetralize federer
You've got the point.
recently I read that Federer just lost his temper when he saw in the tournament schedule that he would play with Safin
Exactly. And as i know, Roger know it and respect it all days long. Marat one of the not many that days who can beat the GODmode Roger years.
I love both Players, Great Match, btw.
i mean federers level at the time was just outrageous, the insane shotmaking was routine for him
People always gave Safin crap about his mental game, but dealing with injuries is just about the hardest mental hurdle any player can deal with. He really deserves more credit for playing with chronic knee problems.
Gosh. He is the GOAT. I mean no one today either plays like this. Just perfect. Sublime
I still remember their 2004 semis match. To me it was one of the greatest tennis matches ever played.
You mean 2005? In 2004 they played in final and Federer won in straight sets...
Miladin Milicevic
Yep, you got me. the 2005 match
Angelica hale
What a match that was ,, Fed's FH is just sublime !!!
The shot by Federer at 13:34 and the catch at 13:36 is insane.
This match was closer than what the scoreline depicts. The only difference was that Safin couldn't take the few BP chances he had, while Fed took his opportunities without hesitation. That 3rd set featured amazing tennis.
Always when I watch this match I remebered the gold period of tennis and then I think and said to myself "like in the old days". Federer is my idol and I beliave he can do it again.
Just finished watching the 2005 AO semi highlights and moved to this video. The string technology changed the game radically in just 4 years time. The power these guys have in their rackets just doesn't allow for net play anymore. I think the court was just as fast in 2009 as it was in 2005, but the racket tech changes the tennis completely.
The surface was switched in 2008 from Rebound Ace to Plexicushion, so there definitely was a slight change to the court speed. Rebound Ace was definitely faster, as most the players said when they first tried the new Plexicushion courts in 2008.
Beechaii2 I thought the initial impression was that the 2008+ courts played faster? I could definitely be wrong, but Rebound Ace was a fairly slow court, especially when it was hot, because it would really grab the ball. Rebound Ace also had a fairly high bounce for a hard court, hence the name.
Nah, even the players complained it was slower. I'm no expert, but even in the matches these days, its visible that the court slows the balls a lot. Apparently, there's some clay under the surface of Plexicushion.
the courts were differently slower and I understand why they did it that's why sluggers and pushers were able to do better at hard courts, it's all about marketing and money.
Federer's weakness is he didn't embrace this tech change which cause him to fall behind Nadal and Nole. They play with latest racquet sizes, keto diet and statistics training. He stubbornly believe in S&V and old tactics.
Que jugador safin por dios!!? De lo mejores, tenia una técnica divina. Como la de federer.
I love Jim Courier's commentary. :)
Ya I too love his commentary
"Unless your name is Marat"
Watching how well Roger played this match makes Nadal's victory in the final all that more remarkable... especially after Verdasco took Nadal to 5 sets in the semi the day before the final!
Federer played against the history that day, unfortunatly for him, was crushed by the pressure of victory at any cost, everyone thought that he had to win to reach Sampras at 14 Slam. Roger had only 52% of first serve in the entire match. The average career is 63%, to give an idea of the deficit performance on serve. Nadal obviously played very well, but Federer threw away the game literally, like the first 2 sets of Wimbledon 2008, he was probably still shocked by the bad defeat suffered at Roland Garros 1 month before.
@@lorenzopasquini3797 XD.he didnt throw away shit.Nadal was completly drenched in the finals and still won.
Aleksa Teemo That tournament was the first time I was truly amazed at Nadal’s fitness. Just as Fed raised the bar for skill in the sport, Nadal raised the bar for fitness in the sport. Just insane being able to play those 2 classics back to back.
@@aleksamilosevic8792 Yeah Nadal was playing amazing that final but Federer was struggling with the nerves and expectations like Novak was at the US Open this year. Federer couldn't find a first serve to save his life (only 50%) in that final and his bp conversion was at a low, which is also partially due to Nadal of course.
@@SHVideografie He hit 60% i think and that was his probably best backhand performance against(specifically) Peak nadal.
A nicely measured highlights reel, after all, tennis is a show not just a collection of winners. And rofl at the bogan yelling out "Suck it up Princess"
Young Federer was really really tough to beat. He had a smokin forehand
He made great players look bad- (and hit winners off of winners).
Beautiful tennis- excellent match point.
One of the greatest matches...I wept like a baby!
What a beautiful game Safin use to have not enough at this match to beat Federer but so much talent in both players
great stuff - thank you for sharing!
Whoa one of a kind that match point.😨🎉 Why do I haven't seen this before? best way to finish the match!! 🙆🏻♂️👏🏻👏🏻
Federer was such a beast.
god, the Safin DTL backhand, the effortless power, and the hilarious anger fits. Miss Safin. On his day, one of the few players who could really take it to Fed.
Greattt Highlights btw , thanks !!
safin was a beautiful player dunno why he left so early
Knee injury and wrist injuries took his ability to hit the ball consistently.
Injuries
Bro he got mono
I love both of them. But Roger's footwork is insane!
I'm sorry but Roger's shot at 2:30 just absolutely blows my mind. To have such little time to react to even get a racket on that ball, much less do THAT... Just wow.
4:24... You just kinda knew he'd do that didn't you...
12:52 Just - somebody record that shot!!!
15:48
Yeah 2:30 was a sweet shot, and single handed backhand winners are always awesome to watch. 4:24 is a vintage Fed shot, he struggles with the running forehand these days, so it's going to be very rare we see that crazy angled forehand again ;)
Safin's serve had the sweetest sound come out of his racket
Wonderful match! Thanks.
Federer's incredulity toward Shot Spot in the early days is hilarious. Go watch Federer nearly losing his sanity during the Wimbledon 2008 final at all the close calls that went in Nadal's favor. He sounds like he's going to cry (see: "It's KILLING me". Nowadays, players don't think twice, but in 2008-2009, Federer and other players weren't quite willing to believe the tech over their own eyes. Funny how far we've come. Now, majors are getting rid of line judges, altogether.
You can cite string technology, court progression, etc. All of those things are true in relation to how this match is different than their epic 2005 encounter down under. BUT the biggest difference in this match is that Federer's movement and court positioning were immensely improved while Safin's was diminished a considerable bit compared to 4 years previously.
Derrick Roberts Yeah this was Safin's last year on tour right? Body was scarred, and his old magic only sparkled occasionally.
Derrick Roberts Federer was definitely quicker in 2005, but the difference was certainly a lot less dramatic than it was for Safin, who was never the same really after that Australian Open Slam win.
***** I would compare the Aussie 05 Safin performance to that of Del Potro Us Open 2009. Amazing ball striking, power tennis but afterwards injury and inconsistency.
+Derrick Roberts bullshit, federer in 2005 was AT LEAST as good if not better than the 2009 federer
+Derrick Roberts You can tell that the biggest difference is that Federer improved his backhand and his 2nd serve. And, although his first serve power and his movement diminished a bit, his smarter placement of the serve and better hitting with the backhand made him a better player. He did learn from his constituents.
look at how hard these guys are hitting the ball. As good as anything we see these days, maybe better. I loved watching these two play. Too bad safin retired too early.
Great match 🎉
Federer looks like a magician on the court!
safin when he came back, he calmed it down a lot. and he just had that charisma (sometimes i swear he would break his racquet on purpose just to please the fans). i remember watching this game. i was rooting for him. its too bad he didn't try harder in his career, he could have had more than just 2 slams.
Fours years after the best tennis match of all time. AO has a tendency for legendary storylines.
Safin was one of the few players that could just flip a switch and go god mode, that’s along with federer, djokovic, nadal, Del Potro, wawrinka, and soderling
Safin looked like he'd been up all night partying all the way through!
He was drinking a bottle of vodka every night and went home with 2-3 girls every night. He said he would wake up with 2 hours of sleep and alcohol still in his breath and went and won several grand slams like this. Pity the talent.
man i missed this kind of games! Today games are too physical!
Amazing player, strong strikes with less effort, amazingly talented...
It's hard to admit Federer is in decline, but it's so much more evident after watching this. He's just so confident, his shot selection so stable and solid, and he moves with such sureness in his stride.
one of Roger's best outfits
Safin was also waaay past it at this point. He never really recovered from his knee injury, one of the reasons he retired early. He played ok in this match, particularly the 3rd set, but you can see how bad his movement and forehand are, nowhere near to where it was before he had his injury problems. Also remember he was 2 points away from stealing the 3rd set breaker. Federer played well in this tournament. Shame he lost in the final.
Nadal 100 per cent deserved the final
@@matteo964 Of course he deserved it, he did win it. That being said, Nadal's own Uncle Toni admitted Roger should have taken it in 4-sets and mentally wasn't tough that day. Part of the drill, have to finish the job.
@@chriswells5983well he's right, people forget that Federer was under a lot of pressure that day and still suffered from back problems and he should have never lost that match but pressure can be crippling, which Nadal and Nole have experienced at some point too since they were always the underdogs and people think of them as more resilient than Federer and can handle pressure better which ofcourse they were proven wrong.
Marat has more musculinity that all atp tour in 2023
Safin such a clean beautiful game when he wasn't in his head...solid talent and technique
I wish Marat stayed longer in the tennis tournaments! One of the best!
15:20 "suck it up princess" XD
I love tennis in 2005 when safin beat Federer, and I love him , after that he game was down gradually , but I stick to his game even he loses !
The ending to this match, oh my goodness!
Such a shame to see post AO 2005 Safin play. He wasn’t the same after the knee injury.
this just goes to show you that Roger kept on growing as a player and working hard, Safin has spectacular talent, but he worked hard for his two slams and partied in between a lot....
10:28 12:53
Thats called talent only a few have it!
Honestly, I feel like foot faults caused by starting past the center line should warrant a let instead of a foot fault. Realistically, players are not intentionally trying to touch or cross the line, they are just trying to serve the ball. I mean, the center line rule is the worst, because players are not being notified pre-service that they are committing a fault before they even start their motion. If you are doomed to fault before you even swing at the ball, is that really fair when a linesman could respectively warn you that you are crossing the line?
I feel like players should at least be allowed to know when they are committing foot faults before they even start their motion. Walking onto the line while serving is a different thing entirely (though they also sometimes come up at the worst moments). And the foot fault calls can't always be taken to be 100% accurate because linesmen often mistake calls. They can obviously choose to avoid making calls on the closer foot faults and only call the obvious ones, but then are they truly doing their job? The fairest way to do this is to simply make foot faults be considered lets unless the serve is considered out. In this case, the returner really loses nothing, because an out serve is still a fault, and a good serve is considered a let, meaning they would get about a 30% chance of the opponent missing the serve and giving them a second serve (assuming a good first serve percentage). Though, players who repeatedly foot fault should be given a penalty, say anything past 2 or 3 foot faults receives a point penalty (or a fault). This way, players don't abuse the system and merely have it as a fallback in case they accidentally make a foot fault, which is usually the case.
Oreoclan At the very least players should be able to challenge a foot fault. I remember back in the day the had cameras right at the baseline to show if a ball landed on the line or not. It wasn't used by the umpire to change a bad call, I think it was only for TV. But that same technology could be added in the Grand Slams. In the case of Safin, he would had challenged the call, and if the replay showed his foot past the line, then he would know for sure he did a foot fault, and not lose his concentration any further.
I think that the way Safin foot faulted shouldn't be a fault. In my opinion, a player should be on the correct side of the centerline just as he goes up for the serve, NOT when he sets his stance. Safin's serve motion makes him first go back with his right leg, but then he moves it forward. And as he goes for the serve swing, that's when the feet position should be considered for a foot fault. But umpiring it this way is a bit more complex. It is simpler just to make sure the player doesn't cross the other side at any point of the serve motion. So this rule is here to stay. Thus, at the very least, extend the challenge system to foot faults (which irk players big time), and double bounces. Just put a small screen TV with the chair umpire with live action feed so he can overrule himself according to a "second opinion". Players would be able to challenge more things than just in/out calls. It's good for the game, good for the players.
Yeah it was a classless call by 'number one son. FFS two sets down in a breaker.
What the fuck are you people saying. Telling that they are crossing the centre line before committing the foot fault? What logic is that? It's just the same as removing the foot faults entirely from the game. What is that other guy talking about? It was a bad timmed foot fault? What the hell is that supposed to mean? He is trying to say if you are 2 sets to love down then be lenient on player. People talking utter rubbish here.
For two millions dollars wouldn't you would make sure your feet were in the right position for EVERY shot?!
Oreoclan you have to be kidding. Notifying them they’re committing a foot fault before they hit it? Are you nuts?
7:00. Seriously? The hands to hit that volley off that Fed FH..just wow.
Often 06-07 was looked at as federer prime, but honestly 09 was the strongest year of his tennis I think!
He did what Nadal did in the previous year (FO+Wimbledon) and made 4 GS finals
Nah 04-07 was better in terms of his form
@@sasookyeah I tend to agree since his back problems really did affect his form and shotmaking beyond those years and he only could hold his top form for like one or two slams at the time not like his prime years.
Sweet shot on match point!
今では、錦織圭くんや大阪なおみちゃんでテニス騒がれてるけど、この頃のテニス界は懐かしくもあるけど色褪せてなく何回観ても凄いプレーに溢れていたなぁ。サフィンは僕の憧れのプレーヤーです！プレイスタイル性格全てかっこよすぎる^_^
Uma aula de tênis!!!! 🎾🎾🎾🏆
Qué bello tenis hacían ambos. Tan limpio, ajustado, brillante... Cada cual jugaba con su "espejo". Dos caballeros del deporte. Y... sin gemidos. [What beautiful tennis they both played. So clean, tight, shiny... Both played with the "mirror" of him. Two gentlemen of sport. And... no moaning].
This safin had self doubts unlike the safin of 2005 who seemed confident that he could beat Federer even at his best.
That foot fault call was outrageous.
my favourite match :)
Safin with right focus would have been very very very close to the level of Federer nadal djokovic
Had injury, lack of self confidence not creeped in ,safin was the one guy who could have matched federer shot for shot on any surface . this should have been the marquee rivalry for a long time if safin stayed injury free.
Silliest thing i ever did hear. I dont think safin cared enough
Sometimes I think Safin had too much pride, and wanted the game to be pretty. Meaning he went for an aesthetic course of a point versus a way to win anyway possible. Good for pretty, bad for winning. Someone talked about Sofia Polgar playing chess like that.
Polarcupcheck Safin had little belief in himself for a while so I believe he over acts with anger to make up for it. He just needed more confidence in himself and he could have won this match. Federer has the perfect balance of everything and that is why he wins. As the spectator said 'suck it up princess' although probably a shitty thing to hear when you struggle with self confidence as it is.
That 'pretty' tennis you're talking about is just shot making aggressive tennis.
Roddick, Blake, Federer, Safin, Gonzalez were part of the 2000-2007 era of shot Making tennis, fast courts and fast balls and players won by hitting winners and not Defensive play.
It isn't a high percentage game and that's why most of these players were never consistent enough to win slams.
To Safin's credit he won AO 2005
agree
Nice observation. Despite his woebegone affect, I appreciated Safin. He was a supremely talented athlete but maybe less of a tennis competitor. Federer is both, I guess.
No, no.
His game was too low margin and he paid for it by not developing the higher margin component. He knew he wasn't good enough by himself.
It's like Kyrgios now.
They pretend they don't care, but in truth they know they aren't good enough for the top.
Playing low margin tennis is not a viable long term strategy. You need high margin shots and defence. You need to balance fight and flight.
Most of Fed's generation didn't have this which is why most people call them a relatively weaker generation.
Safin: He had more talent than Federer, IMO or anyone else that played the game.... He beat Pete Sampras in 2000 and classic Federer in 2005.
If he had Pete's mental strength or Fed's cool under pressure, he would have been one of the greatest players of all time.
Nalbandian or Rios was more talented
More talented than Federer? Lol
yeah, the mental part is so, so important at the very top. You could say that sentence about many, many players. But yeah, Safin had an amazing arsenal.
Big IF
If, if, if. Point is, he didn’t. Which is why Federer is 🐐
サフィンのサーブフォームすごいかっこいい！まさにキャノン！
Federer is so damn good that if Safin played like this against anyone else, he would have destroyed them.
Whoever says Federer had an "easy" era has got to see this. In those days of faster courts, many of today's top draw would have wilted and withered. Alas.
Unlikely.
This Court Speed Conspiracy is only feeble hearsay at best. There is no proof that courts were faster in the 1990's and early 2000's, as Court Pace Index wasn't even devised before 2000, and it wasn't consistently divulged from 2000-11.
The reason courts slowed down is thanks to raquet technology.
You can tell by Jim Courier's reactions that this was the time Federer came in and just took tennis to a whole another level. This is why he is better than Djokovic and Nadal. Even now, Djokovic is only beating Federer in very close sets, he hasn't increased the level of the game as much as Federer did when he came in. Doesn't really matter at the end of the day...
@Logic M no logic in that. A younger federer would absolutely crush djokovic EVERY time. Even now, in January Djokovic choked against an injured Federer, and generally only beats in him in very close sets 7-6, 6-4, etc etc.
Not sure what u guys are smoking.
Djokovic level in 2011 was something that the tennis world never seen. Even Nadal said that. You cant compare Federer to Djokovic , one farmed good players to reach titles the other farmed the best players to reach titles.
@@steffot8468 Give me a break. Djokovic winning in arguably a very weak era the last five years against the likes of Berrettini, Anderson, Tsitsipas, Thiem, Medvedev, del Potro and a 35+ year Federer who still had match points against him and constantly takes him to 5 sets (That's 10 grand slams against weak opponents). + despite winning so much, constantly has lapses in confidence, has embarrassing outbursts and even more hideous celebrations.
@@streamingeagle1 check who was federer playing when he won his first GS and in the next 5 years.
Also check what ranking was his finalist vs the rankings of Federer hate him how much you want he is 🐐
Safin on crutches essentially. He was a sight to behold when he could move.
Called a foot fault so he could be on TV for 1 second :-D
Ugh. This was not the one I was looking for. Have to go look at the one where Safin pounds Federer. When Federer is on his knees on matchpoint..... Safin was such a great player, so good on the eyes.
Haha this was in 2009 - Safin's last year on the tour. You are talking about 2005, that was quite a while ago!
Beechaii2 yessss that’s the one. So good to watch Federer on his knees.
@@TheAudioman15 Yeah Fed doesn't take a fall very often but this time he did and at the worst moment too
Beechaii2 that was back in the day though. When he was more raw and didn’t mind doing things the dirty way. If he had kept that attitude, he could have beaten Nadal more.
@@TheAudioman15 man was getting beaten by Nadal with that attitude
That shot at 12:53 is ridiculous. Rafa-like, I'd say. Federer had no right to win that point.
Safin had the talent but lacked mentality. He also had a playing style that suited Federer. His shots weren't long enough (lacked depth). He had a great start during his early years as a pro but rapidly vanished as Hewitt and all the others of his generation. The Weak Generation.
That generation wasn't really that weak. There maybe weren't quite as many superstars, but it wasn't weak. There's a difference.
Think about it. How many really great players are there now? Four, maybe five? That's not really being fair to the last generation.
You're right, Chris. They were a good-but-not-great generation.
Federer's good-but-not-great (weaker) generation -
Player: Slam titles, WTF titles, Masters titles, Olympics singles
Fed: 19, 6, 27
Roddick: 1, 0, 5
Hewitt: 2, 2, 2
Safin: 2, 0, 5
Ferrero: 1, 0, 4
Davydenko: 0, 1, 3
Nalbandian: 0, 1, 2
Ferrer: 0, 0, 1
Nadal's great (stronger) generation -
Nadal: 16, 0, 30, 1
Djokovic: 12, 5, 30
Murray: 3, 1, 14, 2
Stan: 3, 0, 1
Del Po: 1, 0, 0
Tsonga: 0, 0, 2
Cilic: 1, 0, 1
Berdych: 0, 0, 1
Good-but-not-great Generation: 25, 10, 49, 1
Great Generation: 36, 6, 79, 2
LOL @ 15:21. "Suck it up, princess!"
10.5 2004
Absurd tennis! Would love to play as good as them
Safin hit stronger shot but his recovery very slow between shots..maybe bcause his huge size?
That could be a factor as he's one of the bigger guys on the tour, but he did have a knee injury from a few years back that he never quite recovered from.
Second time im watching this one!
Agreed, the scoreline doesn't do justice! Would have been a very interesting match if Safin forced a fourth or fifth set.