Marco Chiudinelli: Roger Federer has grown up on clay
On a column for Baz Online, former Swiss player Marco Chiudinelli commented on Roger Federer's preparation for the clay-court season. Chiudinelli wrote: "For Roger, nothing has changed compared to before. You should know that clay is the surface Federer grew up on. As kids we exclusively played on clay in summer, and even in winter more than the half of our training took place on an indoor clay court. Consequently, Roger does not need to think on how he should move on clay or how he has to change his game. These changes happen in a natural way as long as he heads into the clay-court (season).
Especially in his training without a racket, when he slides he needs to be very careful. He needs to get this timing again, which is very important. If you slide too short, you will not reach the ball. Rallies and matches are longer. In order to fit to the lenghty, training sessions are longer. You need to hit a more top spin ball. The on-court position is more on the defensive side. Many players stay more behind on clay than on hard or grass. Although Roger returns from an offensive position on clay, he stays on the defence on the second serve."
Federer will play Madrid next. Instead, Serena Williams will be back in Rome and won't play the Spanish event. The Madrid Tournament Director Feliciano Lopez said: "Her greatness has an impact on tennis, and of course we would have liked to have her with us. She is very big."
from Tennis World USA http://bit.ly/2H2jHEb
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