Roger Federer to retire from professional tennis after Laver Cup
The curtain will fall on the legendary tennis career of Roger Federer after the Laver Cup as the sporting icon has confirmed the tournament will be his last professional event.
The 20-time Grand Slam winner has not played competitive tennis since he lost in the quarter-final of Wimbledon last year, but he had high hopes of returning in the second half of the 2022 campaign.
However, he kept pushing his comeback date back and it eventually decided to make his return at next week’s Laver Cup at London’s O2 Arena with many hoping it would be the first of several tournaments he played before he hang up his racket.
The team event, though, will be his last as top-level tournament.
“As many of you know, 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 said in a video.
“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 Laver Cup next week in London will be my final ATP event. I will play more tennis in the future, of course, but just not in Grand Slams or on the tour.”
Federer will go down in history as one of the greatest players the sport has ever produced as he became the first man to win 20 Grand Slams when he won the 2018 Australian Open, although he has since been passed by Rafael Nadal (22) and Novak Djokovic (21).
He won eight Wimbledon titles, with his first-ever Grand Slam win coming at SW19 in 2003, six Australian Open trophies, five US Open titles and one Roland Garros trophy.
He also spent 310 weeks at No 1 in the ATP Rankings, including a record 237 consecutive weeks at one point, while he finished as year-end No 1 on five different occasions.
Federer won 103 titles while he also has a silver medal from the singles at the 2012 London Games and a gold medal in doubles from the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
He added: “This is a bittersweet decision, because I will miss everything the tour has given me. But at the same time, there is so much to celebrate. I consider myself one of the most fortunate people on Earth.
“I was given a special talent to play tennis, and I did it at a level that I never imagined, for much longer than I ever thought possible.”
