Tennis

Federer splits with coach

(Ticker)
Updated: 2007-05-14 09:02

Four tournaments without a title was too much for Roger Federer, who parted company with coach Tony Roche on Sunday.

The top-ranked player for a record 171 consecutive weeks, Federer announced the decision on his website, www.rogerfederer.com.

"I thank Tony very much for his efforts over these last years, during which I appreciated the 12-15 weeks per season we would work together," Federer said. "I am also grateful for the sacrifice he made, traveling so far from his home in Australia and leaving his family."

Roche's role was to help Federer prepare for Grand Slams. The Swiss superstar won six of his 10 Grand Slam titles with Roche as his coach over the last 2 1/2 years.

A former Australian Davis Cup captain who also coached top-ranked players Ivan Lendl and Parick Rafter, Roche began as Federer's coach just before the 2005 Australian Open, which was won by Marat Safin. Later that year, Federer won Wimbledon and the U.S. Open.

Playing without a coach is not unprecedented for Federer. He had no guidance in 2004, when he won 11 tournaments, including three majors.

Federer's first coach, Peter Carter, died in a car crash in 2002. Peter Lundgren served as Federer's coach in 2003, when he won Wimbledon for his first Grand Slam title.

Roche was at this week's Rome Masters, where Federer was upset in the third round by Italy's Filippo Volandri, who is ranked 53rd in the world. Federer clearly was off his game, committing 44 unforced errors against just 12 winners in a 6-2, 6-4 loss.

It was the fourth straight tournament without a title for Federer - his longest drought since becoming No. 1 over three years ago. He carried a staggering 41-match winning streak into Indian Wells two months ago but is just 7-4 since.

Federer lost twice on hard courts to Guillermo Canas in March and was beaten by Rafael Nadal in the final at Monte Carlo, a claycourt event. He never has won the French Open, which starts later this month and is the only Grand Slam played on clay.

At just 25, Federer is four Grand Slams shy of Pete Sampras' all-time record. He has won six of the last seven, including the Australian Open in January, when he became the first male in 27 years to win a Grand Slam without dropping a set.

Despite his French Open failures, Federer has held the ATP Tour's top ranking since February 2, 2004. He broke Jimmy Connors' mark of 160 consecutive weeks (July 1974-August 1977) as the top-ranked player in men's tennis earlier in the year.