Although he didn’t add another Grand Slam title to his tally of 17, 2014 bore witness to a resurgent Roger Federer.
After a stop-start injury-riddled 2013, where there was no greater disappointment than a second round Wimbledon exit, there were thoughts that the great Swiss was on a downward slide.
Teaming up with two-time Australian Open champion Stefan Edberg, Federer increased his racket size and answered the critics emphatically.
By the end of the calendar year, he’d risen four places back to world No.2 and came within inches of claiming a seventh All England crowd in a mammoth five-set final against world No.1 Novak Djokovic.
While an 18th major eluded him, five titles were added to the kit bag including a masters trophy in Cincinnati where he beat a hat-trick of top 10 players (Andy Murray, Milos Raonic and David Ferrer) in succession.
“Overall it was a great season for me,” he said after arriving in Brisbane.
“To play a full schedule … throughout the clay, the grass, the hard court and indoors, I didn’t hold back.
“I got a lot of positive information out of it, to bounce back from 2013, which was a tough year for me.”
> Federer’s day out in Brisbane
Under Edberg , Federer has aimed to play more aggressive tennis and make a more concerted effort to push forward into the court.
“The attacking style is possible if you play at the right moments and in the right way,” he said.
“(It was) exactly the way I wanted to play, which gave me chances at quite a few of the Slams. Hopefully I can go one step further (this year).”
However, it wasn’t all smooth sailing physically.
After the prolonged issues of 2013, Federer’s back again came unstuck at the ATP World Tour Finals in November, forcing his withdrawal from the event after beating countryman Stan Wawrinka in the semifinals.
Since turning pro in 1998, it was just the third time Federer had pulled the pin mid-tournament but he said a jam-packed scheduled – which netted the most wins (71) of any players on the ATP tour – was not to blame.
“It was just a freak thing … just going into spasm,” he said.
“The important thing was that I got over it quickly because sometimes these things can take longer than you think.
“A few days I couldn’t play tennis or even run at all.”
Fortunately, the recovery proved swift.
A mere six days later Federer was back on the clay of Lille leading Switzerland to a maiden Davis Cup title, which included the euphoria of claiming the tie-winning rubber against Frenchman Richard Gasquet in front of a raucous French crowd.
“(Since then) I’ve had no hiccups in preparation in all the matches … never had to stop practice, so it’s all very positive,” he said.