Fiend at Court Hits the Books
When I was in school, I never failed to complete required reading assignments. I simply loved books too much to not manage to find the time to read them. Especially when an essay or a test was in the offing. Consequently, on the eve of the publication of today’s content, I had the completely new experience that I had failed to complete my planned reading. I basically owe a book report on material that I have not read. I did what any self-respecting student would do in that situation: I watched the movie.
I am in the middle of a series in which I am examining three interrelated books. Two are on the Wimbledon finals in 2008 between Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, a match that some regard as the greatest played of all time. The third book is a tennis literary masterpiece, Levels of the Game which was my next planned book to consume. However… life intervened.
This morning I am reporting that I watched the Strokes of Genius film based on Jon Wertheim’s book of the same title. It was really my only alternative given my lack of preparation.
At first blush, my one word summary of the film is “meh.” Condensing a 4 hour and 48 minute match into an hour and a half while adding insight and commentary was a monumental undertaking. In a way, it is the “Reader’s Digest” version of the full match. It was simply not possible to capture the nuance and flow of the match within a reasonable run length for a movie.
That being said, there are reasons why serious tennis players should consider watching the film. First, there is adorable footage of Federer and Nadal as very young junior players. The value of that material is that it adds depth to their adult personas.
It is a generally known part of tennis lore that Federer used to be a hot head on the court. It is quite another thing all together to see footage of him throwing tantrums. The fact that he mastered his emotions to the point that he is regarded as… well, the ultimate master of emotions, is inspiring. It should give any player hope that destructive on-court behavior can be changed.
Ultimately, the film is a story of triumph over adversity for Nadal. Taken in context, he had lost the Wimbledon finals to Federer the previous year in emotionally crushing fashion. Additionally he blew two opportunities to close out the Championship earlier in the 2008 match. In the end, rather than succumbing to the devastating failure to convert those chances, he completed the fifth set with bravery and confidence.
From a personal perspective, in the year when this match was played, I had not yet returned to competitive tennis and have no real time recollection of awareness of who even won Wimbledon that year. I still have a lot of history to learn, and some of that history occurred during my adult lifetime while I was outside the tennis ecosystem.
Perhaps I should read a book or two on the topic. Maybe next week.
 | Strokes of Genius is available for purchase via iTunes. |
 | Strokes of Genius: Federer, Nadal, and the Greatest Match Ever Played |
 | Levels of the Game |
 | Rafa |
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