Federer Eyes Off Fifth Barclays Dubai Tennis Championships Title
- Star-studded field ready to challenge the world number one in Dubai -
Dubai, UAE, January 16th, 2008: World Number One Roger Federer will bid for his fifth Barclays Dubai Tennis Championships title next month when the two-week spectacular gets underway at the Dubai Tennis Stadium.
The super-Swiss finished 2007 as the world number one for a fourth straight year, making him only the fourth player to achieve the feat alongside Pete Sampras, Jimmy Connors and John McEnroe.
And Dubai, a city he spends many weeks of the year perfecting his game before heading off to chase another Grand Slam title, is a perfect base for Federer to prepare for his pursuit of more records.
“I can really concentrate on tennis in Dubai,” he said. “I have no distractions, whereas in Switzerland maybe I still have so many friends, families, I want to do things with. I'm maybe not there to really focus on tennis, whereas in Dubai it's totally different. Maybe, as well, if you want to go, have a day off, like an afternoon off, you can even go to the beach, take it easy. It's just a good feeling in Dubai for me to practice.”
Federer will face his toughest challenge yet as he bids to hold on to his Dubai title, with 2006 champion Rafael Nadal, US Open finalist Novak Djokovic, world number four Nikolay Davydenko, American Davis Cup winner Andy Roddick and dynamic Scot Andy Murray just some of the stars lighting up the greatest tennis tournament in the Middle East.
“Roger Federer is one of the greatest champions the game has ever known, and we are proud that he has adopted Dubai as his second home,” said Colm McLoughlin, Managing Director of tournament owners and organisers Dubai Duty Free. “It will be fascinating to see if he can hold on to his title with so many talented challengers.”
Federer’s eight titles was the best on the ATP Tour, and he became the first player in history to reach all four Grand Slam finals in consecutive years. His record of contesting 10 straight Grand Slam finals is also a record.
He took over the number one ranking way back in February 2004, and by the end of last season he had held the spot for an incredible 205 weeks, easily breaking the record of 160 consecutive weeks that was held by Jimmy Connors. He became the first player since Bill Tilden in the 1920s to capture four straight US Open titles, and he also earned a record $10,130,620.
No wonder many people acclaim him as the greatest player of all time. But Federer insists there is still a long way for him to go before he might be able to accept that accolade.
“It’s nice to be playing against the history books, there’s no doubt,” Federer said. “But I think we also have to be a little bit patient and see really how my records and my career finishes up. At the end of my career we can sit down and say okay, did I break the records or didn’t I? Am I the best or am I not? All this talk right now, it’s all speculation. I’m still very far off in terms of number of weeks at number one, in terms of Grand Slam victories, in terms of tournaments won. I’m heading in the right direction that’s for sure, and I love talking about it and being compared to everybody, but I think we’ve just got to hold on a little bit here and let me play first.”
The 2008 Barclays Dubai Tennis Championships, which is held under the patronage of H.H. Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, begins on February 25th with the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour tournament, and is followed by the ATP event from March 3rd to 8th.
