Epic comeback/implosion tonight, depending on whose side of the fence you're on.
Very watchable match -- Federer down 0-2 in sets and facing double match point as well in the 4th. Ended up winning in 5.
As someone who will watch and support Federer when he's playing, I felt horribly for Monfils tonight. You can see how badly he wanted it, how emotionally invested he was. He just cannot seem to manage his emotions and psyche over the course of a long match.
A guy with an immense amount of talent, but you could see him mentally crumble as the sets progressed. It was twofold -- firstly, when he experienced adversity, he outwardly expressed his emotion(s), therefore giving Federer an eye into his current psyche. Not saying players should go all poker-face like Federer, but there was way too much negative energy coming from Monfils after the 4th-set debacle. Some negative expression is expected, but the positive needs to outweigh the negative. It didn't, at least late in the match.
Secondly, it seems Monfils cannot mentally recover. I cannot look into his mind but it would seem to me that upon experiencing unpleasant emotions, he allows it to snowball and throws himself into a cycle of negative thought patterns. He needs to be mentally boosting himself up and thinking in a more forward, positive manner.
I really hope this guy can continue to practice and work on his mental toughness and endurance. If he can get his mind right he could easily win a major (or a few). Perhaps a sports psychologist would be a good idea for him. It can be accomplished -- mental fortitude, much like anything else, isn't something that we have by default. It has to be worked on over an extended period of time.
