IF ROGER Federer wins his fifth consecutive Wimbledon title in 15 days time - and few in tennis expect him to fail - he will have equalled a feat achieved only by one other man in the modern era. In the early decades of the oldest Grand Slam, William Renshaw won six titles on the trot and Lawrence Doherty claimed five, but since it became a truly international competition only Bjorn Borg has achieved the quintet of consecutive crowns.
It was clear from year one that Federer had the ability and attitude to come close, at least, to matching the Swede's achievement. Now, as he nears the goal, comparisons are inevitably being made between the two men.
Presuming Federer does make i
t five in a row, would that make him merely the equal of Borg? Is there greater in-depth competition these days, and if so does that mean the Swiss player's feat would be greater? Or would Borg still be recognised as the better player?
No definitive answer is possible, of course, and much may depend on who is asking such a question.
If you were of an impressionable age in the 1970s, when Borg began his five-year reign with a straight-sets victory over Ilie Nastase in the 1976 final, you may just feel that Federer could win ten titles yet not be so formidable as the clinically cool man from Stockholm. Or if you watched the classic 1980 final between Borg and John McEnroe you might well think it represented the pinnacle of the sport.
For some observers, however, fitness levels have moved on so much since then that there is no doubting whose achievement is greater. For instance, Pete Sampras - a seven-time winner in all, but whose bid for five in a row was ended by Federer himself - is sure the current champion is out on his own.
"Roger is fun to watch," the American said earlier this year. "He's graceful.
"Roger is dominating the game much more than I ever did. What he's done the last three years hasn't ever been done in the sport."
Certainly, Federer's statistics are intimidating. When Wimbledon gets under way on Monday, he will be the world No1 for a record 178th consecutive week. He has won six of the previous eight Grand Slam tournaments, and ten of the last 16. His winning streak on grass stands at 48.
But Borg's own records stand up to that, and in a couple of particulars at least they surpass it. He won 11 Grand Slams - one more than Federer's current total - out of the 27 he entered.
He won close to 90 per cent of the matches he played at the four major tournaments. And, most impressively of all, he won six French Open titles - three of them (1978-80) in the same years as he became Wimbledon champion.
That, of course, contrasts with Federer's inability to claim the main claycourt title on the calendar. This year, as was the case in 2006 as well, Rafael Nadal stood in his way.
On paper at least, then, Borg could boast greater consistency. Asked last year to compare the two men, the veteran coach Nick Bollettieri highlighted that difference, but also suggested that in other respects Federer might have the edge.
"Borg never broke focus, perhaps even less so over many years than the awesome Federer," Bollettieri wrote in a newspaper column. "Anyone who wanted to beat him had one heck of a task. They had to truly earn it. Borg was more stoic.
"Roger's movement is excellent. He mixes up his game, he's comfortable at the net, he can slice out wide and ace at will.
It would be a long match, a classic. I think I'd take Federer to edge it, but I wouldn't want it ever to end."
Borg was indeed more stoical, at least in appearance and attitude. Federer's love of the game is evident, and he is generally more good-humoured and light-hearted.
But it would be a mistake to presume that, because of this difference, Federer is somehow a softer touch. He can be just as clinical as Borg in his dissection of opponents - he just looks a little less ruthless while going about it.
What is more, it would be unfair to presume Borg's superiority on clay without examining the relative strength of the opponents faced by the two men. In the 1970s there was no-one of Nadal's quality on clay to take on the world No1, as is shown by the fact that, in his six finals, Borg faced five different opponents.
Guillermo Vilas of Argentina made it into two finals against Borg (1975 and 1978), but otherwise there was a different man on the other side of the net every time. In 1974, the Scandinavian's first final at Roland Garros, it was Manuel Orantes; in 1979 Victor Pecci, then Vitas Gerulaitis in 1980, and finally Ivan Lendl in 1981.
Vilas, who won the title in 1977 and was a losing finalist for the third time five years later, was the most consistent player on clay at that time, other than Borg himself of course. But it would still be fair to say that he could not put up anything like the fight against Borg which Nadal manages against Federer.
In the end, the choice is subjective. And in any case, we should accept that, even if Federer should lose in the final or an early-round upset this year, he could still come back to add to his four titles to date. Sampras, for instance, managed seven, but only in a run of three, then a missing year, then a run of four - and the American is still rightly hailed as one of the greatest grass-court players in tennis history.
Should he lose this year, Federer will still only be 26 by the time Wimbledon 2008 comes around, so he is not exactly in the evening of his life. The critical factor, though, could be how he reacts to losing to Nadal on grass.
So far, he has been able to shrug off his losses to the young Spaniard on clay, particularly because of the timing of the French Open. "You do forget about it right away if you win Wimbledon the following month, you know," he said. "That kind of overshadows the French Open by a mile." If Nadal overshadowed him in both events, though, he might feel a bit different.
It should also be recalled that, by the time he turned 25, Borg had completed his collection of Grand Slam titles. If Federer is winning titles into his 30s, what does that say about the respective merits of the two - that Borg's greatness was all the more impressive because so fleeting? Or that the younger man's talent was greater because he was more durable? Let's give it a decade then reconvene on that one, shall we?
Borg factfile
Born: 6 June 1956, Stockholm, Sweden
Career prize money: £1,830,443
Career titles: 61
Grand Slam titles: 11
GRAND SLAM RECORD
Wimbledon
1973 Quarter-finals
1974 Third round
1975 Quarter-finals
1976 Champion
1977 Champion
1978 Champion
1979 Champion
1980 Champion
1981 Runner-up
French Open: Champion 1974, 1975, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1981.
US Open: Runner-up 1976, 1978 1980, 1981. Semi-finals 1975. Quarter-finals 1979.
Australian Open: Third-round 1974.
FACTS
• Was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1987 at only 30 years of age.
• Wimbledon success came early to Borg, he won the Junior title at the age of 16.
• Holds the Davis Cup record singles winning streak at 33 consecutive victories.
• Won his 11th Grand Slam singles title in 1981 in Paris at the age of 25.
• Won more French Open singles titles (6) than any other male player in tennis history.
• His 41 consecutive match winning streak at Wimbledon remains an all-time record.
• Won at least one grand slam singles title for eight consecutive years (1974-1981). Only Pete Sampras has matched this (1993-2000).
• Calm court demeanour earned him the nickname of the "Ice Man" or "Ice-Borg".
• Played in six consecutive Wimbledon singles finals, still a record since the abolition of the challenge round in 1922.
Federer factfile
Born: 8 August 1981 in Basel, Switzerland
Career prize money: £15,632,305
Career titles: 48
Grand Slam titles: 10
GRAND SLAM RECORD
Wimbledon:
2000 First round
2001 Quarter finals
2002 First round
2003 Champion
2004 Champion
2005 Champion
2006 Champion
French Open: Runner-up 2006, 2007
US Open: Champion 2004, 2005, 2006
Australian Open: Champion 2004, 2006, 2007
FACTS
• On his Wimbledon debut, in 1999, Federer suffered first-round elimination at the hands of the Czech world No 59, Jiri Novak.
• In 2001, the Swiss struck his first significant blow at SW19 when he beat four-time champion Pete Sampras in the first round on his way to the last eight, where he lost to Tim Henman.
• The French Open is the only one of the four Grand Slam competitions which still eludes Federer.
• In 2006 Federer became the first and only man to have held three of the four grand slam titles (US Open, Wimbledon and Australian Open) in two separate years.
• Federer has been ranked No 1 in the world since 2 February 2004, and holds the all-time record for most consecutive weeks as the top-ranked male player.
• Earlier this year, when Federer won his third Australian Open title, he became the only male player to have won three separate Grand Slam tournaments three times.
• He is also the only player to have won both the Wimbledon and US Open singles titles in three consecutive years (2004-2006).
