Ask a group of sports fans who the most dominant athlete in professional sports is today and you'll get a variety of answers: Tiger, LeBron, LaDainian Tomlinson, Kobe, maybe a Sox nut or two offers up Big Papi.
A decent case can be made for any of those guys.
But if you were to ask me, my unequivocal choice would be an unassuming, 25-year-old Swiss polyglot who goes by the name of Roger Federer.
I would generously call myself a lukewarm fan of professional tennis, yet I jury-rigged an antenna out of tinfoil for the crappy TV in Wren Hall's lounge just so I could watch one of Federer's matches earlier this year. He is one of the few individuals who transcends his sport: someone who can transfix any casual fan with his brilliance. Watching Federer flick effortless backhands from the baseline, dissecting his opponent with shot after pinpoint shot, is like watching Barry Sanders break a linebacker's ankles in the open field or Michael Jordan impose his will in the fourth quarter.
My favorite Federer moment came in 2004 during a match against some poor overmatched schmuck. The guy hits a great cross-court forehand from the left corner and catches Federer, standing in the middle of the court, out of position. He turns as the shot is landing, takes three impossibly smooth, loping strides towards the baseline, and hits a screaming return between his legs, with his back to the net, down the right touch line for the winner. Game, Federer. As amazed as I was, the announcer said quietly, "How did he do that?" It was the most spectacular play I've ever seen in any sport.
The media in Spanish-speaking countries call him el reloj suizo - the Swiss watch. The moniker plays on both his nationality and his consistency; like the watch, Federer virtually never fails. He had a record of 81-4 last year and won both the U.S. Open and Wimbledon titles for the third-straight year, making him the first player in the open era (since 1968, when professionals were allowed to play major tournaments for the first time) to accomplish the feat. Federer is simply unbeatable on grass courts, as his court coverage and ability to hit shots at unbelievable angles exploit the high speed and spin with which the ball bounces off grass. He's won 48 matches in a row on the surface, shattering the old record of 40.
In February, Federer broke Jimmy Connors' record of longest consecutive time spent at No. 1 in the world rankings. Winning just one of the Grand Slam tournaments - Wimbledon, the U.S. Open, the French Open, and the Australian Open - is the highlight of many tennis players' careers, but at the ripe old age of 25, Federer has already notched 10 Gland Slam titles. Most recently, he cruised through the Australian Open without dropping a single set, the first time that's been accomplished in 27 years. The question is not if he will break Pete Sampras' career record of 14 wins, but by how many.
Federer's peers speak of him almost reverentially. John McEnroe, one of the most successful players in tennis history, calls Federer's forehand, "The greatest shot in our sport." Andy Roddick, the sixth-ranked player in the world, has said that he is, "As close to unbeatable as [anyone] has been." Sampras said, "I think he can and will break every tennis record out there." When Federer plays his best, he simply cannot be beaten - and his contemporaries know it.
Even if you're just a peripheral sports fan and have never seen him play, do yourself a favor and tune in, just for a set. You're missing Mozart with a tennis racket.
