Much was speculated about the appearance of Roger Federer at the awards ceremony for the Roland Garros final between Rafael Nadal and the Norwegian Casper Ruud on June 5. However, the Swiss, who was present at Court Philippe Chatrier, preferred to enjoy the triumph of his friend from the shadows.
Now, a week after the Spaniard’s historic victory, the 40-year-old tennis player came back on stage to talk about his future in the world of tennis, as well as the spectacular feat of the manacorí, his eternal rival and member of the historic Big Three with him and Novak Djokovic.
Rafa obtained his fourteenth Roland Garros trophy with a victory over Casper Ruud, who was a disciple of his academy, and Federer did not hesitate to praise the Spaniard: “It is incredible what he has achieved. Pete Sampras’ record, which I broke, was 14 Grand Slam titles, and he already has 22″, he explained to the Swiss newspaper Tages-Anzeiger.
The Basel native continued: “He has now won Roland Garros 14 times. Is incredible. I’m so glad he got it. I take my hat off. After the tenth, the eleventh… I already thought: this can’t be, but he continues to raise the bar. It’s gigantic.”
Regarding his future in tennis, His Majesty reported that he plans to return to professional competition next year , at the age of 41, although without a specific calendar outside of his two firm commitments: the Laver Cup (again with Nadal ) and the Basel tournament , which he organizes himself.
Federer formed a doubles pair with Rafa Nadal , so far for the only time, in the inaugural edition of the Laver Cup in Prague 2017.
Winner of 20 Grand Slam tournaments, the Swiss has not played since he was eliminated in the 2021 Wimbledon quarterfinals by the Polish Hubert Hurkacz, and in statements to the newspaper in question, he replied with a “definitely yes” when asked if He planned to return to the professional tennis circuit in 2023.
“How and when, I don’t know yet, but that’s the idea ,” added the tennis player from Basel, who at the beginning of the year already confirmed his presence at the Laver Cup in London, teaming up with Nadal, before participating in his own tournament. “I still have no plans beyond the Laver Cup and Basel. For me it is important to get back in shape and train hard. Once I get that I will be able to choose how many tournaments I play and where.”
“The Laver Cup is a good start because you don’t have to play five games in six days. I want to be able to do that in Basel. But I come from a long period without playing, ”he added.
At the same time, in dialogue with the Swiss chain SRF , he assured that “from time to time” he plays with his four children , but “things are moving slowly” after his third operation on his right knee in the last year and a half.
“I had surgery at the end of August and then we already knew. They always ask me: ‘So, how’s everything going?’ And each time I reply that it will still take a little while ,” he explained to SRF .
In addition, he commented that he currently works on all his “physical condition, so that there is no overload” , going to the gym “five or six times a week. I have to be patient, I constantly make progress.”
The Swiss tennis player, winner of 103 tournaments in more than 20 years of career, only played thirteen games in 2021 and six in 2020. Absent from the courts since Wimbledon-2021, he is currently ranked 50th in the ATP.
