- Roger Federer has announced that he will retire from the ATP Tour and grand slams following the Laver Cup next week in London.
- Federer’s long career coincided with those of 22-time grand slam winner Rafael Nadal and 21-time grand slam winner Novak Djokovic.
- Almost as soon as Federer announced his retirement, tributes began rolling in from the tennis world.
Often cited as an all time great, Roger Federer declared his decision of retiring from ATP tours and grand slams. The last few years of Federer’s career have been marred by a series of injuries, as he underwent two knee surgeries in 2020 and another after he was defeated by Hubert Hurkacz in the 2021 Wimbledon quarterfinal — his last competitive match to date.
The Man, The Myth, The Legend
Roger’s long career spanning for 24 years, was marked by admirable feats and indomitable persistence. “I am 41 years old. I have played more than 1500 matches over 24 years. Tennis has treated me more generously than I ever would have dreamt, and now I must recognize when it is time to end my competitive career,” the 20-time grand slam winner said. Roger was lately bothered with multiple injuries to which he stated “I’ve worked hard to return to full competitive form. But I also know my body’s capacities and limits, and its message to me lately has been clear.”
He also thanked his competitors during his wonderful journey. He said that he was lucky enough to play so many epic matches that he would never forget. His celebrated rival Rafael Nadal took to twitter to commemorate his great rival and friend: “Dear Roger, my friend and rival. I wish this day would have never come. It’s a sad day for me personally and for sports around the world. It’s been a pleasure but also an honor and privilege…”. Despite playing alongside two of the greatest players of all time, Federer has still broken multiple records, including becoming the oldest ever world No. 1 at age 36.
Among his many accolades, Federer won a career grand slam: the Australian Open six times, the French Open once, the US Open five times, and Wimbledon — the tournament with which he was synonymous — a record eight times. He also won 103 ATP titles — the second most in the Open era behind only Jimmy Connors — a record six ATP finals, the Davis Cup and a gold medal at the 2008 Olympics in the men’s doubles.
Of His Own Accord
Federer’s retirement announcement arrived a month after Serena Williams also declared her intention to evolve away from the sport. Due to injuries, Federer was absent from this year’s main draw at Wimbledon for the first time since 1998, and he will finish his career at the Laver Cup — a tournament which he was a driving force behind in which six players from Europe play six players from the rest of the world. In 2019 Roger indicated “I would like to go out on my terms… I don’t have the fairytale ending in my head saying it has to be another title somewhere and then I have to announce it big…”
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Source : EditionCNN
