Roger Federer set for Wimbledon return after rocking with Coldplay
Fresh from being a special guest at a Coldplay concert, Roger Federer will head to Wimbledon as the All England Club will celebrate his achievements at SW19 with a special ceremony on Centre Court on Tuesday.
The 20-time Grand Slam winner joined British rock band Coldplay on stage during their Spheres World Tour concert in Zurich on Sunday as he provided back-up “support” when they performed their single Don’t Panic.
And Federer – introduced as the “original band member” by frontman Chris Martin – didn’t just stand around awkwardly during the occasion at the Letzigrund Stadium as he played the shaker and interacted with the band and the crowd.
The 42-year-old has certainly been enjoying life away from the professional circuit as since he retired in September last year as he has attended several concerts, took in some NBA games in the United States and visited his sponsors across the globe including Uniqlo in Japan.
But it will soon be back to business for the tennis great as he will visit the scene of many of his greatest moments on Tuesday as he will honoured before the start of play.
Roger Federer joins Coldplay on stage. What a moment! pic.twitter.com/sHG6myRK0Y
— Tennis365 (@tennis365com) July 3, 2023
Wimbledon chief executive Sally Bolton announced the news, saying: “I’m pleased to say that Roger will be with us tomorrow and we will have a special celebratory moment on Centre Court before play starts just to honour him as the man holding the most gentlemen’s singles titles here at Wimbledon.
“For those lucky enough to have a seat on Centre Court tomorrow I’d encourage them to get into their seats about 1.15pm and we’ll have a moment just to celebrate his achievements and to say thank you for all the memories.”
After bowing out from tennis during the Laver Cup last September, Federer has kept a low profile at tennis tournaments although he did attend the Halle Open in Germany earlier this month as he was also honoured having won 10 titles there.
The eight-time Wimbledon winner’s last match at SW19 came in 2021 when he lost to Hubert Hurkacz in the quarter-final after struggling with a knee injury. He was also a special guest at Wimbledon last year when they celebrated 100 years of Centre Court.
Bolton also revealed that Serena Williams, who retired after the US Open last year, had also been invited but was unable to travel.
“We invited Serena similarly this year but as you’ll know she’s pregnant so understandably couldn’t travel,” said Bolton. “We of course wish her lots of luck with the remainder of her pregnancy and we hope maybe we might see her next year.”
