A true tennis legend, Roger Federer announced Thursday in a press release his retirement at the end of the Laver Cup, a competition which will take place in London from September 23 to 25 and is run by his company.
“The Laver Cup next week in London will be my last ATP event,” Federer, 41, the holder of 20 Grand Slam titles during his long career, posted on social media.
“I will still play tennis in the future, of course, but it won’t be at Grand Slam tournaments or on the circuit anymore,” Federer added.
The Basel has not replayed in competition since his elimination in the quarter-finals of Wimbledon 2021 due to a recalcitrant knee.
“It’s a bittersweet decision because I will miss everything the circuit has given me. But, at the same time, there are so many things to celebrate, ”said the former noh 1 in the world, who held the record for Grand Slam titles for men before being overtaken by Rafael Nadal (22) then Novak Djokovic (21).
Roger Federer, who notably has eight Wimbledon trophies to his name, considers himself “one of the luckiest people on Earth” in his message on social networks.
“I was gifted with a gift for playing tennis and raised it to a level I never could have imagined and for far longer than I thought possible,” he explained. .
Further details will follow.
Federer in other people’s words
During his long and glorious career, Roger Federer won the unanimous esteem of his peers, who expressed him as admiringly as they were removed.
“I threw the kitchen sink at him, but he went to get his bathtub from the bathroom. – American Andy Roddick after losing the 2004 Wimbledon final
“In modern tennis, you are either a clay specialist, or a grass specialist, or a hard court specialist. Or you are Roger Federer. –Jimmy Connors
“I have the feeling that this rivalry goes beyond tennis. It’s a topic of conversation for people outside our world. And it’s good for our sport. – Spaniard Rafael Nadal at the Australian Open in 2017, on his duel with the Swiss
“He makes shots that the others don’t. Sometimes you want to cross to the other side and give him a high five. – American Sam Querrey after a match at Wimbledon in 2015
“Roger is capable of playing tennis that should be outlawed…” – former US player Tracy Austin
“I would advise his next opponents not to ask me for advice. – Andre Agassi after his loss to Federer at the Australian Open in 2005
“Federer is the most fantastic player to watch playing tennis. – John McEnroe
“The best way to beat him would be to hit him on the head with a racket. –Rod Laver
“If I were his trainer, what could I say to him? With a racket, he’s a magician. – Goran Ivanisevic, former Wimbledon winner
“I can cry like Roger; Too bad I can’t play like him. – Britain’s Andy Murray, after losing to Federer in the 2010 Australian Open final
“The metaphysical explanation is that Roger Federer is one of those rare supernatural sportsmen who seem to free themselves, at least in part, from certain laws of physics. – writer David Foster Wallace in a 2006 editorial in the New York Times titled “Federer as a religious experience”
“He’s a real person. It’s not a riddle. If you meet him at McDonald’s without knowing who he is, you wouldn’t imagine that he is one of the greatest sportsmen in the world. –Andy Roddick
“Impossible not to wonder if he is from the same planet. –Novak Djokovic
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