Roger Federer had the ability to transcend tennis, becoming a source of inspiration for champions of other disciplines as well. The Swiss has had a gigantic impact on tennis, to which he has brought a myriad of fans and sponsors closer.
The former ATP number 1’s career ended in September last year, when he played his last doubles alongside Rafael Nadal at the Laver Cup. The crowd at London’s O2 Arena paid him a splendid tribute and some images are went viral, like Nadal’s tears and the emotion of all the other players.
The 20-time Grand Slam champion did his best to be able to give himself one last lap of the carousel, but the conditions of his right knee led him to say enough at 41. According to the latest rumors, the King should comment on Wimbledon 2023 on the microphones of the BBC and ESPN.
In the latest edition of the ‘Tennis Podcast’, former ATP No. 9 Marc Rosset revealed that Federer was not too prone to sacrifice early in his career.
Rosset on King Roger
Former 9th player in the world and one of Roger Federer’s relatives, Marc Rosset gave an interesting anecdote about his young compatriot during his appearance on Tennis Podcast.
“I remember the first time I trained with him. He was the new Swiss talent, but he was so lazy. Usually when you train on the circuit as a youngster you are a little stressed, you want to play well, you are very nervous.
This guy came onto the court like he didn’t care at all. I was like, ‘Wow'” Recalling a match between Roger Federer and Andre Agassi in 2003, Darren Cahill revealed that after losing, Agassi predicted the Swiss maestro would change the way tennis was played.
“I can’t remember the score but Andre lost, absolutely got thumped by Federer,” Cahill said. “I was shocked at the level that Federer played, just took the racquet out of Andre’s hand. It was one of the best displays of tennis and I walked into the locker room afterwards and tapped him on the shoulder.
I just said, ‘Bad luck, mate. Roger was too good’ He just looked at me and started laughing and he went, ‘What the hell was that? I have never seen tennis played like that before. This guy is going to change the way tennis is played’
He saw and felt it before Roger sort of became Roger. He lifted tennis to a level that we had never seen,” Cahill added.
