Roger Federer stuns fans with surprise tennis match with high-profile partner in Italy
Roger Federer has been enjoying a sporadic return to tennis in 2026 and it’s only set to get bigger in the coming months.
The Swiss star enjoyed a practice set against Casper Ruud at the Australian Open, as well as a doubles exhibition with Lleyton Hewitt and Pat Rafter at the Melbourne event.
He also returned to Wimbledon as a spectator, where he was famously the only person left in the Royal Box for Alexander Zverev’s clash with Jiri Lehecka.
Later this month, Federer will be inducted into the Tennis Hall of Fame before he returns to the US Open to play an exhibition match with John McEnroe, Andre Agassi, and Andy Roddick.
Before his return to the biggest stages in tennis, Federer has been spotted playing the sport he dominated for so many years at a local club in Italy.
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Federer played Taormina Tennis Club alongside French businessman Bernard Arnault, who is the current CEO of LVMH, the world’s largest luxury goods company.
Fans were stunned to see the 20-time Grand Slam champion playing alongside them and one club player revealed their thoughts on Instagram after spotting the Swiss icon on the court next to him.
On Instagram, Antonio Gullotta wrote: “Watching him play just a few meters away is already extraordinary. Seeing him do it in your own city—Taormina—makes it all the more special.
“A star-studded doubles match alongside Monsieur Arnault, set in a location that once again proves it can host world-class figures and champions.
“Kudos to the Taormina Tennis Club for welcoming a champion of such stature and for giving us a moment we will not soon forget. What a privilege. What a spectacle. Thank you, Taormina!”
While fans might be surprised that Federer decided to play a tennis match on clay, which is considered his weakest surface by a long margin, the star actually grew up on the surface.
Speaking in 2018, Federer said: “I am a clay-court player, essentially. I grew up on clay. I played even indoors on clay, that was my court in the winter.”
“I was enjoying playing on clay, at the beginning on the Tour it was hard because I lost my first eleven [matches] and then at the French Open it took time to win, and then people thought, he doesn’t like clay.”
Federer only won Roland Garros on one occasion, in 2009, when he defeated Robin Soderling in the final. Despite Rafael Nadal’s dominance on the surface, Federer did manage to win 11 ATP Tour titles on clay.
