Former world No 2 explains why it was important for him to attend Roger Federer’s emotional farewell
Former tennis player Tommy Haas has revealed he made special plans to attend this year’s Laver Cup in order to attend of his great friends Roger Federer’s farewell match.
Haas’ career overlapped with that of Federer at the German made his debut in 1996 – two years before the 20-time Grand Slam winner – and retired in 2018.
Like Haas, Federer struggled with injury during the last few years of his career and he eventually announced earlier in August that he would retire after the Laver Cup after failing to recover from his long-standing knee problem.
His final match turned into an emotional affair as he teamed up with his great rival and friend Rafael Nadal in the doubles and both shed tears during the post-match ceremony.
In an interview with Eurosport Germany’s tennis podcast Das Gelbe vom Ball, Haas opened up about Federer on and off court as well as the farewell encounter.
“I knew beforehand that he would say goodbye there at the Laver Cup,” the four-time Grand Slam semi-finalist said.
“It was important for me to be there. I’ve never been to the Laver Cup before. It was a great atmosphere in the O2 Arena. It was very emotional, almost too emotional.
“Roger is an incredible guy, on and off the court – as a friend, as a father, as a man. You always have fun with him. He has a great outlook on life and it’s wonderful to spend time with people like him.
“Roger is in the same situation now as I was back then: you are no longer on the tour. But when we both play table tennis, we have fun, we have the ambition to win.
“You can talk about Roger’s career for a long time. It’s unbelievable what he achieved, how long and consistently. He played tennis as if he was from another planet, that was the time from 2004 to 2006.”
Nadal agreed to participate in Federer’s finale despite his wife being on the verge of giving birth, although his baby boy eventually arrived in early October.
The Spaniard’s decision to play showed just how much respect there is between Federer and Nadal, according to Haas.
“Unbelievably, many emotions,” the German said. “If you are an insider, you know that Rafa and Roger get along well. Rafa could have been a father any day in London at that time and he was still there.
“Roger is so incredibly popular. You become a fan of the guy relatively quickly. You could feel that. There was no one among the 18,000-19,000 in the O2 Arena who didn’t have tears in their eyes. The farewell couldn’t have been better.”
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