The fans are increasingly impatient to see Roger Federer back on court. The former world number 1 will be one of the stars of the Laver Cup, which will be held at the O2 Arena in London from September 23 to 25. The Swiss star has not set foot on the track since Wimbledon 2021, after undergoing a third operation on his right knee.
Despite his lengthy rehabilitation, the 41-year-old from Basel has never considered retiring. The 20-time Slam champion has gone through a real ordeal in the last two seasons. Suffice it to say that the Helvetian has played only 13 official matches in 2021, with nine wins and four losses.
A round of 16 at Roland Garros and a quarter-final at Wimbledon were his best results of last season, too little haul for a legend of his caliber. The Maestro will end his very brief season at the Basel ATP, which returns to the calendar after the cancellation of the last two editions due to the pandemic.
In addition to winning all possible awards, Federer has always been highly appreciated by other tennis players for his kindness. In a lengthy interview for the ATP website, Sam Querrey – who had just retired from tennis – recounted his first meeting with Roger during the 2007 Australian Open.
“I remember it like it was yesterday. Roger Federer and I met in the hotel elevator and he welcomed me to the circuit,” Sam recalled. “He congratulated me and told me it was a pleasure to see me there. It was a very nice gesture on his part”, he added.
Federer and Querrey have met four times on the major circuit, with a 4-0 record in favor of the Swiss. In the ESPN microphones, John McEnroe gave his opinion on the Roger’s return: “Even though he is 41 years old and has not played for a long time, the pressure on his shoulders will still be enormous.”
Federer has left a void
Roger Federer’s game was among the most difficult to break as he barely had any weaknesses in his tennis arsenal, former World No. 6 Nicolas Lapentti opined. “He was that kind of a player where you would play a good shot and a better shot would come back.
It was very difficult to find a weak spot,” Nicolas Lapentti said on a recent episode of The Craig Shapiro Tennis Podcast. “Roger was awesome in all aspects,” Lapentti further said. “He was great on the court, he was great off the court, he was unbelievable in the locker room, he used to hang out and be funny and do jokes.
He loved soccer so we talked about soccer. He was all class. Of course, what he did to the tennis world was so amazing. I think no one will ever match what he did,” he expressed.
