Coca-Cola IPTL gives Indians the surreal Roger Federer experience

A spiritual experience to see Roger Federer play live

I envy Londoners a lot. And to a certain extent even Parisians, New Yorkers and Melburnians. But it is London most of all that makes me go green.

Amongst all the places around the world to which the ATP tour, Davis Cup and the Grand Slams have taken Roger Federer, London has had the largest share of the spoils. Of his 1,223 career singles matches, he has played a staggering 124 matches in the English capital. India is the seventh-largest country in the world, and he has played here exactly zero times.

So when it was announced that Federer was travelling to India to participate in the Coca-Cola International Premier Tennis League, little balloons of confetti exploded in my heart. We didn’t have to take an expensive overseas flight to watch him play. Federer was coming to us.

I have always wondered what it would be like to watch him in the flesh. Will that expansive forehand seem just as beautiful when seen from 25 metres away as it does on the tube? Will that smooth, fluid service motion evoke the same emotions without the benefit of action replays to slow it down for the senses to comprehend? Is his footwork, which has been described as something that “makes ballerinas want to burn their shoes”, really that graceful?

Often, stadium experiences can be a let-down. For example, in cricket, unless you have seats which are at either end of the pitch, you cannot really appreciate the subtleties of bowling viz. swing, seam, spin and line. Also, since the playing field in cricket is so large, and the ball is only slightly larger than a fist and in various stages of discoloration, it’s easy to lose sight of it.

Tennis arenas, on the other hand, are more intimate. End to end, a tennis court is 78 feet long. Also, the ball is a fluorescent yellow fluff covered rubber sphere that stands out on pretty much any coloured court. And while the best seat in the house is the same one as that offered by TV, the proximity to the play lets you appreciate it from all around the court.

Arguably, the best place to watch the sport live has to be the emerald green courts of Wimbledon. On that hallowed turf, where tennis began, all the traditions and pomp take centre-stage, adding a certain grandeur to the play that can’t be found anywhere else.

The Coca-Cola IPTL is none of that, of course. Loud music, an eager DJ, a boisterous crowd and plenty of gimmicks are present all around. I’m not saying that they’re doing it wrong. The IPTL is vastly different from the tour matches, and if there is a time and place for such things, then this is it. Besides, I’ll take what is given.

But when Federer did take to the court, even the IPTL held back on its music. The crowd piped down. I’ve seen that poster “Shh! Genius at Work” before, and in New Delhi on the 7th and 8th of December, I saw it take effect.

First of all, TV does not lie when it tells you that Federer is graceful. Those comparisons between his shots and all the good things in the world turned out to be true. And realising that was one of the happiest moments of my life.

Federer is effortless. But he is not noiseless on court. I’m not talking about the occasional low grunt that is heard on some of his second serves. That lightning quick footwork of his makes a soft, whizzing noise which accentuates his fleet-footedness.

Secondly, his attacking instincts stand out. While taking on a short ball, Federer steps up and moves forward each time. He often finishes his points at the service line, having moved in behind a groundstroke crunched from a few feet inside the baseline – that’s around 12-14 feet traversed in the space of one shot.

Even when on defence, he sticks fairly close to the baseline, relying on his footwork and his skill at playing the half-volleys to cut out any angles for his opponent to exploit.

Thirdly, his kinesthetic sense and awareness of all the things around him are otherworldly. His feet are never tangled, and his balance never seems to be disturbed. There was a point in his doubles match with Gael Monfils when a lob by Djokovic seemed to have far too much speed on it to chase it down. But Federer was already scampering backwards when he realised that. He then quickly turned his body and executed some kind of a reverse smash with the ball squarely above his head, all the while completely blind to the other side of the court.

There were other surreal things to see as well. Given the team nature of the competition, there was plenty of chemistry on display between Federer and his teammates from the Indian Aces. which was fun to see. But the biggest take-away for me from the three days has to be the fact that watching Roger Federer play live is truly a remarkable experience.

I had thought that this experience would satiate the hunger that I have been nurturing ever since I first started following him on the tour. Nothing of that sort has happened. The desire to travel to Wimbledon has only become stronger.

One of the most quoted pieces of writing about Federer is the epic eulogy written by the late author David Foster Wallace. He describes watching the maestro play as a “religious experience”. I concur with Wallace; I feel blessed.