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In the year He was unable to finish victorious, losing to long-time rival Rafael Nadal in a doubles match for Team Europe at the Laver Cup.
At the age of 41 and trying to recover from his third knee surgery in 18 months, the great Swiss fell into the inevitable march of time. He left the sport with 20 Grand Slams, eight Wimbledons, 103 titles and more than $130 million in prize money alone, all with extraordinary grace, laser precision and a signature one-handed backhand.
But the journey began with small steps. In a recent video posted by the ATP Tour, Federer can be seen as a ball boy. The post’s caption reads: “1993 – It all started…Ball’s son at the Swiss Indoors in Basel, Switzerland.”
Watch: 12-year-old Federer as a ball boy in Basel
Confidence has never been an issue — who else walks onto Wimbledon’s Center Court in a cream blazer with braided cream?
The artistry associated with the Swiss earned him legions of fans decked out in ‘RF’ caps and gave him an aura few could achieve.
A columnist once wrote a fascinating article titled “Federer as a Religious Experience.”
– number one –
Federer held the world number one ranking for 310 weeks, including 237 consecutive weeks between February 2004 and August 2008.
His net worth is estimated to be $450 million in 2019 and his cash register recognition is the Federer brand in 2019. In 2018, he signed a 10-year, $300 million contract with Uniqlo.
He was 36 years old at the time.
Federer left his opponents bamboozled in prime time.
“I dropped the kitchen sink and he went to the bathroom and got the sink,” sighed Andy Roddick, who lost in the 2004 Wimbledon final.
Off the court, however, Federer is a family man, father to twins, Myla Rose and Charlene Riva, and Leo and Lenny with wife Mirka, a former player he met at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney.
His road to superstardom wasn’t always so smooth.
As a talented young player, Federer’s hair-trigger temper threatened to stunt his progress.
“I had a hard time going to court trying to do my job properly. It was a big deal for me,” he said.
At the tender age of 19, Federer defeated his personal hero Pete Sampras at Wimbledon in 2001.
But 12 months later, Federer crashed out of Wimbledon in the first round.
It took a personal tragedy for him to press the reset button.
Just before turning 21, his coach and best friend Peter Carter died in a car accident in South Africa.
Introduced
Since then, the multilingual Federer has not let his inner demons consume him, he has dedicated himself to winning in style.
with AFP inputs
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