Roger Federer is undoubtedly one of the best athletes of the modern era, and his ability to transcend tennis has allowed him to be loved in every corner of the world. The former Swiss champion is not the player who has won the most ever, indeed most of the records have been taken away from him by his eternal rivals Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic, but there is no doubt that the King is the most popular tennis player of all time.
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The 20-time Grand Slam champion ended his glorious career two years ago, playing his last doubles match with Nadal at the Laver Cup at the O2 Arena in London. His last single dates back to the 2021 Wimbledon Championships, when he was defeated by Hubert Hurkacz in the quarterfinals due to a knee in poor condition.
The former world number 1 would have liked to continue playing for some time longer, but the condition of his knee was too precarious to be able to continue at the highest level. Federer underwent various surgeries in the last two years of his career, but he never felt like he could return to the levels that had characterized his legendary career.
The Swiss Maestro needed some time to accept this reality, but he made the right decision also thanks to the support of his team and his beautiful family. As he promised when he announced his retirement from the professional tour, the former world No. 1 has remained in close contact with the sport that has made him a global icon and has appeared in several tournaments in recent seasons.
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The Swiss was present at both the US Open and the Rolex Shanghai Masters this year, where he also had a small practice session with the young Spanish ace Carlos Alcaraz.
King Roger loves to joke
Despite being a very competitive person, King Roger has always had a very relaxed and likeable attitude off the court.
On the latest edition of the Argentine TV show La Noche Perfecta, Diego Schwartzman opened up on Federers attitude: I get on well with him, but were not friends either.
Hes the opposite of what people think, by far the most mischievous. When youre training, the times you have to share a training session, hes always hitting balls at 150 km/h at his team, non-stop.
If theyre not careful, the balls hit them in the chest. You wonder whats going on and he bursts out laughing.
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Hes always hitting his team, pulling down his pants, all the nonsense we do as Argentinians, I swear.
The legend from Basel was so long-lived because he continued to enjoy himself the whole time and life on the professional tour was never a burden for him.
The GOAT debate
The 20-time Grand Slam champion has been an inspiration to everyone who has approached tennis over the past two decades, which is why many still consider him the GOAT.
While the numbers are all on Nole Djokovic's side, many fans are convinced that no one has had the same impact on the sport as Roger. The former world No.1 has always benefited from the support of fans, in every corner of the world, and his popularity has reached levels never seen in tennis before his arrival.
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The Swiss has also attracted many sponsors thanks to his achievements and charisma, taking the sport into a new dimension. It is true that the King no longer has his records, but it would be wrong not to consider his legacy as a testimony of absolute greatness.
In a recent interview with Tennis Channel, top coach Paul Annacone said that Federer does not deserve to be ahead of Nadal and Djokovic in the GOAT debate: "Number three, the great Roger Federer. He was something spectacular, he was Picasso with a tennis racket.
Number two, the great Rafael Nadal. At number one... just look at the H2Hs. This guy (Djokovic) has just been a little bit better than the other two for a longer period."
Former World No.1 Jim Courier also expressed his opinion on this topic: "Roger Federer, believe it or not, is my number three," the American added. "I would've thought 10 years ago Federer was unequivocally the very best and then along comes this guy, at number two, the man we're celebrating today Rafael Nadal and he unlocked the key to getting inside Federer's game.
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And then this guy at number one would end up tracking them down. A lot of comes down to me to head-to-head records as well. I think if you look at it Djokovic is slightly better against these guys."
