Time has the ability of standing still in Basle. Spend a week there and it'll feel like a month.
So, in the middle 1980s when a close friend of mine, Peter Carter, decided to take an offer to play club tennis for TC Old Boys in Basle, I was horrified.
Peter based himself in Switzerland and quickly became a local. He took a job as one of the coaches at the club and nestled into the Swiss way of life.
Thirteen years ago I was back at the club to catch up with Peter and spotted him on court working out his bright young hope, Roger Federer.
We had spoken about the 13-year-old, but not in great depth, so I sat and watched as they went through their training routine.
No question, he looked good. The kid had a fast arm with a strong forehand and a good feel for the ball. But he was far from perfect, and to be perfectly honest, I thought there was a kid back in Adelaide who was potentially better.
"Whaddya think of him?" Peter asked, stepping from the court. "He looks OK," I replied.
"That's it, just OK?" he said.
"Carts, you could drive a bus through that backhand. Look at that thing. He shanks it half the time, his slice sits up, he takes a huge step when it's outside the slot and he's not stepping to the left on the neutral ball," I said.
"Yeah, but he's gonna be good, isn't he?" Peter said with confidence.
With that, Roger was quickly forgotten.
Two years on in 1995 and it was back to Switzerland to look after Australia's 16-and-under world youth cup team and a first glimpse at the best juniors around the world.
There was some kid from Chile beating the life out of forehands that left dents in the back fence (Fernando Gonzalez) and another from Peru who looked 25 and sported chest hair that would have made Austin Powers purr with admiration (Luis Horna).
Australia drew Switzerland in the first round and two 15-year-olds were about to have their first look at each other.
Lleyton Hewitt (Australia) v Roger Federer (Switzerland).
And parked in the captain's chair for Switzerland was none other than Peter Carter.
I sat confidently as I expected Lleyton to bury this kid's backhand and Peter was going to cop an earful after the match.
Problem was, Roger had improved. He had improved a lot.
But the match quickly turned from a potential lesson in tennis development to a lesson in kid management.
Both guys were setting new records for racquet bouncing, arguing, smashing balls and just straight out whingeing. Roger would even swear in English and I could assume only that he wanted Peter to have no misunderstandings about his frustrations.
The end result? Federer defeated Hewitt in three sets.
It turned out to be a rare victory for Roger over Lleyton in the early years as Roger's development into a top player was stuck on the rollercoaster ride of expectation.
Then in 2002, Peter died in a car accident while holidaying in South Africa. Those close to Carts were gutted, and still are by the loss of our friend.
Maybe it was Roger's wake-up call, maybe it put some life lessons into perspective or maybe it was just plain coincidence, but Roger started to mature.
The regular glimpses of brilliance mixed with occasional signs of negativity and self-doubt were replaced with a guy starting to feel comfortable in his own skin.
Then came the 2003 Masters Championship in Houston. Even though he had broken through at Wimbledon earlier that year, this week would define him.
Just before Roger stepped on the court to play his first match against Andre Agassi, he was pulled aside by a gentleman with a vested interest in the tournament and given a verbal dressing-down.
It shocked Roger and it was obvious to all that he was clearly shaken.
Roger had apparently made some negative remarks about the event in Houston to which the gentleman took personal offence. He was probably within his right, but the timing was extremely questionable.
History would suggest this occasion was going to be too much for Roger. A bad record against many of the top players, lack of success in the US, matched by the recent controversy, were all ingredients for a poor Federer showing.
The records will show that Roger saved a match point that day against Andre and found a way to win when all the odds were stacked against him.
What it doesn't show is the respect he earned from a legend that day. Andre believed we had just seen what truly lies deep inside Roger.
Minutes after the match, disappointed and soaked in sweat, Andre muttered these words with his head down in the locker-room: "This kid is a genius. He's going to change our game."
Roger went undefeated to win the 2003 Masters Championship, beating Andre again in the final.
His record since that event speaks for itself. But more significantly, his domination over players who previously had caused him trouble has been simply staggering.
There are two things I believe.
In more than 30 years of being a fan, spectator, player and coach of this game, Roger is the best tennis player I've seen.
He probably needs to complete his career by winning in Paris to be regarded as the best in history, but even that can be debated.
Secondly, Peter would be damn proud. Not just for what Roger has achieved inside the lines, but more importantly, for the man he's matured into outside the lines.
Roger holds the most important job in our game as the world's best player and he carries that responsibility beautifully - much like the way he plays.
