Federer Wait-lists Changing of the Guard

MELBOURNE, Australia -- It took roughly 15 minutes for Roger Federer to stuff Generation Next into a box and place it neatly on a shelf in a closet somewhere.

Nothing to worry about here.

Federer did it again Sunday. He beat Andy Murray 6-3, 6-4, 7-6 (13-11) to win the Australian Open. That makes 16 major titles, adding to the record Federer already holds, building on the argument most people think he has already won: Is he the best ever?

History. Federer. Records.

Ho hum.

"I'm over the moon winning this again,'' he said. "I think I played some of the best tennis again in my life.''

Or, as Murray put in: "To keep doing it year after year is pretty special.''

It's a sign of Federer's age, I guess, that he just won his first major as a father. Somehow, that doesn't seem as impressive as Kim Clijsters winning the U.S. Open as a mother.

But whatever. Wait till he does it as a grandpa.What more can he do? Maybe win a Grand Slam, all four majors in the same year. Why not? Who's going to take it from him?

That's the question for Generation Next.

"I know this is an incredible trip I'm on,'' Federer said. "We'll see where it ends.''

Apparently, there is no end. Twenty-eight, Federer's age, is supposed to be old age in tennis. The last time Pete Sampras finished a year No. 1, he was 27.

John McEnroe never won a major after 25. By 28, Bjorn Borg had been retired for two years.

Andre Agassi and Jimmy Connors were exceptions. Agassi won five after turning 29, and Connors three. But they were from different eras. Yes, even Agassi.

The men's game has progressed so fast, become so much more physical and athletic than ever. That makes Federer even more amazing. He has been in 18 of the past 19 major finals.

I can cry like Roger ... It's just a shame I can't play like him.
-- Andy Murray Age creeps up fast on tennis players, so it's a little risky to say this: But Federer could have five more top years. How many majors will that take him to?

Twenty? Twenty-two? Twenty-four?

When No. 16 was over, Murray pinched his nose and fought off tears as he spoke to the crowd. The pressure was on him, as he was trying to break a majors slump for British men's tennis.

The string is up to 150,001 years now. Federer had joked two days earlier that Murray was standing up to a drought of 150,000 years.

Actually, it's a mere 74, which is nothing to a Cubs fan.

"I can cry like Roger,'' Murray said to the crowd, referring to Federer's tears after losing to Rafael Nadal in last year's final.

"It's just a shame I can't play like him.''

Who can from Generation Next? Juan Martin del Potro beat Federer in the U.S. Open final for the first real breakthrough on him, or on Nadal for that matter.

Now, it was going to be Murray's turn. This first major is a required passage.

So Federer's task was to push back not only Murray, but also an entire generation.

Murray's problem has been that he's too timid. At some point, you have to just grip it and rip it. He finally figured that out, which is how he beat Nadal in the quarterfinals.

Then, Murray swung hard for 15 minutes Sunday, and ...

Went back to dinking.

It was hopeless waiting for Federer to make mistakes, hand over a major. Federer was great, but this entire generation is going to have to prove that it's not satisfied riding in the back seat.

Federer denies it, but he played mind games with Murray before the match in a press conference. He has an amazing way of sounding like he's complimenting an opponent while keeping him clearly on the next level.

Federer said that Murray was a great player, but also brought up the disaster of his first major final, a U.S. Open loss 17 months ago to Federer: "Now that he didn't win the first one, I think it doesn't help for the second one around.''

He talked about Murray having too much pressure, sounding sympathetic about it, and noting that when he came back to the U.S. Open this year, "He crumbled.'' Federer also pointed out that having won several Australian Opens already, he felt no pressure.

And he went right to the heart of Murray's style, which he doesn't respect: "I've been against many counterpunchers, guys that keep the ball in play ... I knew if I was not going to play a good match, [I] could just walk off the court and shake hands and say, 'Well done.'

"But I usually don't play bad matches anymore.''

When was your last bad one?

"Last bad match? I don't know.''

Murray finally got aggressive in the third set, but it was too late. He did manage five set points in the tiebreaker, missing an easy forehand he'll never forget.

The breaker was a classic, if the match wasn't. On one championship point, Federer tried a crazy drop volley, and Murray ran it down and pushed a backhand down the line for a winner.

Federer thought, "My God, he just grabbed the trophy out of my hands and I might end up losing this thing.''

Instead, he grabbed back.

Generation Next is going to need someone who has the courage to attack Federer. Even Sampras has said he would have loved to have faced Federer, prime vs. prime, at Wimbledon to see how Fed would respond to someone attacking his backhand on the slick grass.

Nadal attacked Federer and bypassed him until his knees gave way. Del Potro attacked and won.

That's the gameplan, and Murray's going to have to accept it.

For now, Federer keeps going. On Monday, he'll be No. 1 for the 268th week of his career, tying Connors' record.

Next week that record will be gone, too.

Ho hum.

E-mail me at gregcouch09@aol.com