Federer Loses 2nd Grass Court Match in 7 Years!

Roger Federer lost his 2nd grass court match in 7 years in the final of Halle to Lleyton Hewitt 3-6 7-6(4) 6-4, the first time in 16 consecutive matches the former Australian #1 had not lost to the 16-time major champion. Federer's only other loss on grass had come at the hands of Rafael Nadal in the epic 2008 Wimbledon final, which many observers call the greatest tennis match ever played.

Federer had a 29-match win streak on grass at Halle dating back to 2002, and after losing to Robin Soderling in the French Open quarterfinals this year and failing to defend that title he faces defending his Wimbledon title for the first time with a loss in a grass court warm-up tournament. Federer is going for his record-tying 7th Wimbledon title, this times as World #2, behind Nadal.

As Federer approaches the end of his storied career the shock defeats will become more frequent and the major wins will become less frequent. However, with 16 Grand Slam singles title, 2 more than the previous record, he is playing for the record books, and I expect him to win at least two more, ending his caeer with 18 or 19 after the 2012 London Olympics.