“Roger is the symbol of aesthetics and perfection in sports. Roger Federer is timeless.”
Those 14 words of Formula One icon Sebastian Vettel highlight everything Roger Federer is about. Elegance. Class. Beauty. PeRFection.
Today, at 41 years old, Federer announced his retirement from the sport of tennis, with the upcoming Laver Cup in London to be his grand farewell. A fitting city for the Swiss Maestro to bow down in. Of course, London hosts Wimbledon, the most prestigious and sought-after trophy in the world of professional tennis. Roger’s favourite tournament.
His name has been engraved onto the trophy at The All England Club a stand-alone eight times. This record may be reached or even broken, of course. Novak Djokovic is looming with seven wins, and who knows what the future holds once the big three hand over the baton – Matteo Berrettini is looking pretty comfortable on the grass, for one...
Nobody will ever receive the love like Roger, though. Nobody will get the British crowd on their feet like Roger or merit applause like Roger. Since first winning the ATP Fans' Favourite award back in 2004, Federer has never lost out, not even once. His popularity and impact on the sport of tennis are unrivalled. Someone else has to win it from now on, unfortunately, but I'm sure he'd still get all the votes for years to come.
Sometimes, sport goes beyond the numbers and statistics. It’s easy to judge sport in this fashion, but that feels robotic to me. Of course, numbers are a big side of sports and should be celebrated and appreciated. I hold awards, records, and statistics in high regard. To me, though, they aren’t the be-all and end-all that some make them out to be. Charisma and entertainment are equally as valuable.
No, I don’t mean a Nick Kyrgios kind of ‘entertainment’ (if you can call it that). I mean an entertainment that could only come from the most talented tennis player ever to step foot on the court, and an enticing charisma to go alongside it.
To call Federer’s game beautiful doesn’t do it justice. Watching him play tennis was like watching an artist at work; each backhanded strike of the ball, a stroke of the paintbrush. Both with a sharp, but elegant, finish from a perfectly angled wrist. Perhaps it wasn’t his best or most effective shot, but Roger’s one-handed backhand will always be my favourite shot in tennis. Simply stunning.
The King makes it all look effortless, too. Roger could play a five-set thriller and seemingly not break a sweat. His backhand motion can almost appear nonchalant, yet it fires past the opponent in the blink of an eye, before the spectators can even turn their heads in their famous manner.
I mentioned his Wimbledon record, and it is well documented just how associated Roger Federer is with the legendary tournament, but he was far from a one-trick pony. He has also held six Australian Open titles, five US Opens, and a Roland Garros.
Five US Open titles are cool, sure. They're cooler back-to-back-to-back-to-back-to-back though, right? That's what Roger achieved in his era of sheer dominance of the ATP tour in the mid-to-late '00s. '04, '05, '06, '07, '08. He was world number one for 237 consecutive weeks. That's a record of Roger's that may never be broken. Four and a half years straight as the undisputed best in the world. The next longest run? The 160 weeks of Jimmy Connors.
He also won six Wimbledon titles between 2003 and 2009. The only one Federer missed out on in this time period went to his greatest competitor and close friend Rafael Nadal, in one of the greatest grand slam finals of all time. If it wasn't for the Spaniard winning his first of two Wimbledon titles that year, Roger would've captured an unfathomable seven in a row. Six out of seven is mightily impressive, nonetheless.
Roger Federer wasn't only successful in this time period though. In 2018 he became the oldest ever number one ranked player on the ATP Tour at 36 years old. To reach this height once again whilst facing competition from Nadal and Djokovic, who were 32 and 31 respectively at the time, was an incredible achievement.
He fought to the very end, but athletes listening to their bodies is so, so important. Federer has undertaken three knee surgeries since 2020, and has no doubt worked tirelessly to give himself a chance of returning to the tour once again. Unfortunately, all good things must come to an end.
1,526 matches. 1,251 wins. 275 losses. 103 titles, 20 grand slams. Millions inspired. One Roger Federer.
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