Tennis Hits the Books
William Skidelsky is a literary editor for the Observer who stepped away from junior tennis before returning to the sport as an adult. “Federer and Me: A Story of Obsession” is a memoir of his life framed out against his super fandom of Roger Federer. It is a brilliant literary tactic that makes his own story relatable while simultaneously drawing in Federer super-fans who similarly obsess over the player.
Despite the fact that I have zero interest in the life story of Skidelsky, the book is a compelling examination of the nature of fandom. Skidelsky traces his own history of rooting interests back to his childhood discovery that having a “team” was a necessary social tool for a boy in primary school. He refines and builds on that theme throughout the book.
One of the most interesting sidebar aspects of the book to me are the detailed descriptions of the various methods for fans to obtain tickets to Wimbledon. I have never been a fan of camping, but Skidelsky’s accounts of his participation in the overnight queue for tickets is rendered in such reverential detail that it actually sounds appealing. It might be a ritual that all tennis fans should experience at some point in their life. I am probably too old to do it now.
Federer and Me pays careful detail to the evolution of the modern graphite racquet and it’s impacts on the more beautiful aspects of tennis. Federer is one of the few players to emerge in the graphite era with premodern stroke technique. For example, Federer plays with a modified eastern grip rather than the extreme western that is more prevalent in the game. It is the primary source of elegance in the visual appeal of his strokes.
Federer and Me was completed in 2014, which illustrates the principle drawback of writing about a player who is still competing: The story may still change significantly. As an demonstration of that point, Novak Djokovic has a limited number of cameo mentions in the book. Most notably he is used to illustrate the inelegance of the modern extreme western grip forehand.
On the other hand, Rafael Nadal is depicted as an asymmetric ogre. Skidelsky claims that true Federer fans are fundamentally required to loathe Nadal. The most famous wedgie in all of sport is described in painstaking detail along with the other tics that Nadal feels compelled to complete before delivering a serve.
Skidelsky makes a pilgrimage to the grass court tournament at Halle to see his idol play. At that tournament he managed to obtain press credentials that granted him access to Federer post-match press. He asked Federer two questions at the tournament. It was the only time he ever spoke with his hero.
In many ways Federer and Me: A Story of Obsession is a love story about beautiful tennis. Skidelsky sees the Federer-Nadal rivalry as a referendum and debate over how the game of tennis should be played. He is clearly on Federer’s side of the argument.
Federer and Me: A Story of Obsession is a story of how Federer made tennis beautiful again.
 | Federer and Me: A Story of Obsession |
