The Swiss tennis player Roger Federer made his last professional match this Friday, losing to the Spanish Rafael Nadal in the couples that closed the first day of the Laver Cup.
In London, along with his rival and friend Nadal, Federer was defeated by Americans Jack Sock and Frances Tiafoe, 4-6, 7-6 (7-2), 11-9, in more than two hours.
Without playing since the 2021 Wimbledon tournament, due to several knee operations, the Swiss had announced last week that he would end his career in the Laver Cup, a test that pits a European team against one from the rest of the world.
Federer says goodbye to tennis with 103 titles won, a number surpassed only by Jimmy Connors (109), 20 of which in Grand Slam tournaments, in which he is only surpassed by his contemporaries Nadal (22) and Novak Djokovic (21).
Throughout the match, the lack of competition was evident in Federer’s game, often failing to display the footwork that made him famous, even commenting to teammates that he was “playing in slow motion”.
Always in a good mood and smiling at his teammate Nadal and his opponents, Federer even asked a teammate for water, saying he was “too tired” to go get it.
The 41-year-old Swiss succumbed to emotion as he greeted the rest of the team in Europe and the rest of the world.
But it was not only Federer who showed his emotions and cried at the end of the match, with his friend Nadal not holding back his tears either.
After the end of the match, the organization of the Laver Cup also showed a video tribute to the Swiss champion, with messages from some of his great opponents throughout his career, which make him one of the greatest in the history of this sport, with the Tribute to the break with Nadal.
Source: TSF
