Roger Federer’s opponents announced for his match at the Shanghai Masters
Roger Federer is set to return to the US Open for the first time since his retirement, but his tennis comeback will not end at the Grand Slam.
The Swiss icon has returned sporadically to tennis throughout the years, most notably at the Australian Open at the beginning of the year.
Federer played a practice set in Melbourne alongside Casper Ruud, before playing out an exhibition doubles match alongside Pat Rafter and Lleyton Hewitt.
He’s set to do the same thing once again at the Shanghai Masters and his partner, and opponents, has now been announced by the Masters tournament.
Federer is set to team with Li Na, who is the most decorated Chinese player in the history of the sport. She won two Grand Slam titles, at the Australian Open in 2011 and Roland Garros in 2014, and reached world No 2 in the WTA Tour rankings.
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They will play the brother-sister partnership of Marat Safin and Dinara Safina, both of whom earned stunning accolades during their tennis careers.
Safin claimed two Grand Slams himself, at the US Open in 2000 and the Australian Open in 2004. Those were two of his 15 career titles, which helped him reach world No 1 on the ATP Tour back in 2000.
Safin only managed to win twice in his 12 matches against Federer in their careers, with the Russian star notably knocking Federer out of the Australian Open in 2005.
Safina, meanwhile, never claimed a Grand Slam title, reaching the final of the Australian Open and Roland Garros. She did, however, reach the summit of the WTA Tour rankings back in 2009.
As a result of the siblings reach the summit of their respective divisions, Safin and Safina are the only brother-sister pair to reach world No 1 in tennis.
This will be Federer’s second consecutive appearance at the Shanghai Masters, after he played an exhibition doubles match alongside actors Donnie Yen and Wu Lei, plus former WTA star Zheng Jie, at the 2025 event.
Federer was no stranger to the Shanghai Masters trophy during his career, claiming the iconic Chinese title twice, in 2014 and 2017.
The star ended his career with a record of 41–12 at the Shanghai Masters in the 15 appearance he made at the tournament, which equates to 77% win rate. That
The star also won the ATP Finals when the event was held in Shanghai, claiming the title three times while in China.
Much like every appearance he makes in tennis since his retirement, Federer’s return match at the Shanghai Masters is set to go down incredibly well with the tennis world and the fanbase in China.
