When Gaudio first saw Federer play: “This guy is terrible”

The tennis world is still processing the news of the retirement of Roger Federer, what no one wanted to receive, but which many saw as possible. Finally, the Swiss say goodbye after the Laver Cup. Along the way, dozens of titles, points to remember and, of course, countless anecdotes.

Among so many stories, there is one in particular that has several details, at least curious. If the tennis referents in the early 2000s agreed on anything, that was it Roger aimed to be one of the greats since the Junior Circuit. Gastón Gaudio did not think the same way.

With the news of the Swiss retirement still very fresh, an anecdote of ‘Gato’ from several years ago appears. In an interview, Gaudio talked about the first time he saw Roger in action, more than two decades ago. “I’ll tell you the truth, so you realize that you can’t even trust me …”, began the Temperley native.

And he said: “The first time I saw Federer in Rome it must have been in 98 ‘, 99’, I don’t remember anymore. With Federer there was an expectation, ‘Here comes Federer, everything will be fine,’ they said. It was Boy, I was playing the qualifiers or the first round in Rome “.

“I was with Benito Pérez Barbadillo, who is now Nadal’s press officer, and who was working for the ATP at the time. We were watching the game and I told him ‘I’m telling you the truth, this boy is terrible’I told him. This guy will never be number one in the world. He doesn’t know how to hit it backwards How will he become number one in the world? Imagine my vision, “said the Argentine tennis player.

The rest is known history. In this, Gaudio ended up messing it upand Roger has finally made his mark in tennis. Then, between laughs, he completed the anecdote. “I don’t see him that well, he said, and I guess why I missed him. The best of all life, of all history, Federer “, closed.

The story of the rivalry between Federer and Gaudio

More than twenty years later, it is clear that Gaudio is not talking about forecasts. In his heyday, the ‘Gato’ was able to share a circuit with Federer and, despite having faced each other on several occasions, the Buenos Aires native has never been able to allow himself the pleasure of beating him, as several Argentines have done. The most remembered crossing of him? 2005 Master Tournament, in Shanghai.

Gaudio and the Swiss clashed five times, and although some were more equal than others, they all ended up favoring the Basel native. The first time they shared the pitch was at the Gstaad tournament in Switzerland in 2003. In the premiere of this clash, Roger took the duel in two setsand earned a spot in the grand finale of that tournament.

Later, around the same year, but this time at the Canadian Masters 1000, Gaudio managed to take a set but could do little against an inspired Roger who won the third. Same story at the Masters 1000 in Hamburg in 2004: the ‘Gato’ won the second set, but didn’t make it.

Speaking of his pass to Canadian soil, Gastón explained: “I played in Toronto on hardcourt. I was 4-1 in the third and he served 15-40. He made me ace, ace, ace, ace. 4 to 2 I served 4 to 2. I played, too … he broke me, 4 to 3 and then I lost 7 to 5. I always lost, asshole! I don’t know how I did it, but when he had to win the point he always won“.

And before closing that year 2004, both of them would see their faces again. He was in the Masters Tournament: in the prelude to what would be his most remembered battle. The match was played in Houston and the match was won by the Swiss in two sets. A year later, he would be found in Asian lands.

After an impressive year, Gaudio has once again earned the right to present a Masters tournament. The “Gato” was one of the best in the world, and arrived in Shanghai with the aim of definitively breaking Federer’s hegemony. Fate would finally cross them in the semifinals.

“When I played him, obviously he has always beaten me, but always, except in Shanghai, I have always been thereI’ve always felt I can beat him “, comments Gaudio. And when the exception is made in the match played in China, it has to do with a performance rarely seen by Federer in such cases.

Federer gets rid of it: it was 6-0, 6-0 to eliminate the Argentine and to reach the final, where he would finally face David Nalbandian, in a memorable match that would have crowned Cordovan. The match against Gaudio did not reach 50 minutes and ‘Gato’ remained with the desire to reduce the advantages in the record.