Federer engages in Nadal mind games
Saturday, 5 July 2008Roger Federer has accused his Wimbledon final opponent Rafael Nadal of taking too long in between points and says umpires ought to be more willing to hit the Spaniard with a time violation penalty.
Nadal has often been accused of exceeding the 20-second limit between points, and was twice hit with warnings in this year's French Open in the semi-final against Novak Djokovic and the final against Federer.
Under the rules, a second violation would incur a point penalty and Federer said: 'The unfortunate part is the umpire will always give him a warning but he'll never give him a point penalty.
'It's obviously a fine line. Until he gets into position to serve he takes his 20 seconds then he takes another 10 or 15 seconds until he really serves. I'm not saying he abuses it but he never feels the heat that much.'
Federer admits he has been affected by Nadal's go-slow tactics in the past but insists he will not let it get to him as he seeks to secure an historic sixth consecutive Wimbledon title over the Spaniard.
Federer added: 'It used to be irritating when I played him a few times in a row and I really felt he was playing very slow. I think he's speeded up since those times and I actually felt he was playing fair lately.
'It's up to the umpire. I'll try to concentrate. I don't think I'll win or lose a match because he takes five seconds extra on a point. It's on the edge, I'm aware of that, but it's up to the umpire to decide what he wants to do.'
