Tennis legend Roger Federer announced his retirement from the ATP tour and Grand Slams on 16 September. The ace player will retire after participating in Laver Cup in London. Federer has a glorious career of 2 decades in the professional world tennis game. He has been ranked No 1 for 310 weeks.
He wrote in his Instagram post “The past three years have presented me with challenges in the form of injuries and surgeries. I’ve worked hard to return to full competitive form.” He continued, “ But I also know my body’s capacities and limits, and its message to me lately has been clear. I am 41 years old. I have played more than 1500 matches over 24 years. Tennis has treated me more generously than I ever would have dreamt, and now I must recognize when it is time to end my competitive career.”
The Remarkable Tennis Records:
The proud winner of 20 Grand Slams has played more than 1500 matches over a period of 24 years. Although the last few years he was struggling to be in form due to multiple injuries. He went through 2 knee surgeries in 2020 and 2021. He played his last competitive match in Wimbledon in 2021. He is only in 3rd position after rivals Rafael Nadal (22) and Novak Djokovic (21), who are still active.
The legendary player has won remarkable 103 singles during his career so far. He is known for his unique style of standing on, strong backhand drop shorts. The announcement was not a great shock as he was not active in competitive tennis after his knee surgery in 2021. The announcement came just a few days after his contemporary women player Serena Williams retired from tennis.
Message From Another Legend:
His equally popular rival Rafael Nadal took to Twitter to send him a heartfelt message which said, “ Dear Roger, my friend, and rival, I wish this day would never have come. It’s a sad day for me personally and for sports around the world. It’s been a pleasure but also an honor and privilege to share all these years with you, living so many amazing moments on and off the court.”
He said further “We will have many more moments to share in the future, there are still lots of things to do together, we know that.”
“For now, I truly wish you all the happiness with your wife Mirka, your kids, and your family, and enjoy what’s ahead of you. I’ll see you in London at (the) Laver Cup.”
Sports fraternity and fans from all over the world have flooded touching comments on his recent Instagram post.
