The early defeat of Roger Federer, the unofficial ‘grass court king', in Wimbledon is shocking, to say the least. What is worse, he lost to a player ranked outside the top 100, a new low by the lofty standards the all-time great had set for himself.
The change of grass at Wimbledon and inclement weather conditions are being offered as possible reasons for Federer's early exit and indeed of some other greats like Maria Sharapova who too was knocked out by a 131st-ranked qualifier from Wimbledon.
Of late the unbridled enthusiasm and stamina, the quicksilver reflexes, the brilliant recovery capacity of the great man has been missing on court and he has lost to unheralded players quite often. Federer's idol, Pete Sampras, never returned to Wimbledon after his second round defeat to a relatively unknown player in 2002. Tennis fans hope Roger Federer will not follow suit, that he will regain his motivation and make a turnaround in the US open.