After his first major success at Wimbledon in July, Roger Federer became world number one for the rest of the 2003 season. That summer, the Swiss had everything in his hands.
He took a victory away from the ATP throne in Montreal, suffering a thrilling defeat to Andy Roddick in the semifinals. David Nalbandian beat Switzerland in Cincinnati and the US Open and stole a lot of points from Roger, who was hoping for a better run during the indoor season.
Winning the Vienna title, Federer went to Madrid as one of the favorites and played well in the first two rounds to reach the quarters. The Swiss beat Alex Corretja 6-4, 6-3 in 70 minutes in the opener.
Federer lost 11 points in ten service games, breaking once at the worst moment.
Roger Federer in 2003:
Roger Federer fought against Andy Roddick and Juan Carlos Ferrero in 2003. It happened when he was serving for the first game, which is never a good sign.
Still, Roger recovered his game instantly to secure the set with another break on his count. Federer was a better player in the second set and grabbed it with just one break to advance to the next round.
He beat Mardy Fish 6-3, 7-6 in an hour and 32 minutes to secure a spot in the quarters. Serving at just 50%, Roger hit four aces and five double faults. He faced three break chances and erased two to limit the damage.
On the other hand, Fish couldn’t keep up with that pace, struggling on second serve and losing serve twice to propel the Swiss over the finish line. Asked about his favorite for the top spot at the end of the year, Roger chose Andy Roddick over himself.
Still, Federer said he would do anything to catch the American during the indoor season and claim the honor. “I still don’t feel as good as I did at the end in Vienna, it takes time and I’m still holding back a few blows.
I hope I will feel better in the upcoming games, especially on serve. Besides, it’s never easy against Mardy; he has a solid serve and an explosive return. When you win a few games and reach the next rounds, you start to feel the ball better; that gives you the courage to chase the lines.
Right now I’m going with more hits inside the line, because it’s not easy to control. The surface in Madrid is fast; the bullets are heavy, but they still fly.
The conditions are very different from those in Vienna. I don’t know what it takes for me to become number 1 at the end of the year ahead of Roddick or Ferrero. I have to go further than them to have a chance.
Roddick is in the best position and he probably deserves to finish first,” said Roger Federer.
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