By: Fahad Bin Azad
Editor: Md Kayadul Islam Neon
Roger Federer, the racket swinging Swiss youngster , who went on to become one of the world’s most skilled athletes, announced his retirement from competition on the 15th of September. Rodger posted an audio clip on all of his social platforms. He mentioned he is 41 years old now, has played more than 1,500 matches over 24 years and that it is his time now to recognise when to bring down the curtains of his career, and that time is now.
“Tennis has treated me more generously than I ever would have dreamed” He said in his audio clip.
This retirement comes as another shock to the Tennis world as Tennis superstar Serena Williams took part in her last professional tournament at the 2022 US Open, announcing her retirement on August 9th after a remarkable 27-year career in which she achieved 23 Grand Slams, and four Olympic gold medals leaving a big mark on Women’s Tennis and Tennis in general.
Achievements
The legendary player ended his competitive career with a staggering net worth of around $550 million, coming from huge amounts of endorsements and cash prizes from various tennis championships.
Speaking of winning, the top class player has won a total of 103 titles in his career. These include 6 ATP Finals titles. 20 Grand Slam titles, 71 Hard Court titles, and 19 Grass Court titles. All of these above are all-time records. Apart from these, Federer has won an Olympic singles silver medal, and an Olympics doubles gold medal. He is also a Davis Cup champion.
Leading to this decision
A career in sports is a very short lived career, the human body can take the stress of being an active player for so long. Roger Federer, at the end of the day, is a human being even though he is inhumanly incredible. His retirement wasn’t really a decision he chose to take, he had no choice.
Federer’s career has been plagued by injuries over the past several years. He underwent two knee surgeries in 2020 and another after losing to Hubert Hurkacz in the 2021 Wimbledon quarterfinal, which was his last competitive match to date. With all these injuries, he had realized his quality as a player was being hampered. Leading to this decision to prioritize his health and end his career as a competitive player.
“I’ve worked hard to return to full competitive form. But I also know my body’s capacities and limits, and its message to me lately has been clear.” He said.
The Final Match
23rd of September 2022, the day that’ll go down as one of the saddest in tennis history.
Roger Federer signed off from tennis on Friday (23 September) in an epic doubles match alongside long-time rival and friend Rafael Nadal at the 2022 Laver Cup in London. The 41-year-old signed off after a 24-year career with an epic 2-hour, 12-minute three-set defeat to Team World’s Jack Sock and Frances Tiafoe.
He tried hard to hold it all in, but this is Roger Federer, it wouldn’t be him not to tear up. As he was giving his final speech, he couldn’t keep it in and started sobbing uncontrollably, his voice cracking as he still tried his best to continue talking. The whole moment was very bitter sweet, a bit nostalgic as well, as he also had started sobbing on his very first championshipship win years ago. He mentioned how he cherished and loved every little detail and moments of the day leading up to the match. He was not upset with the loss, he just enjoyed the entire day. The scores at that point didn’t matter as the legend was done playing. Reality hit everyone, we will never see Roger Federer play professionally ever again.
“I enjoyed tying my shoes one more time, and everything was the last time. With all the matches and having the guys being here, fans, family, friends, I didn’t feel the stress so much.” He said in his final speech after the game.
And with that,
one of the best careers ever witnessed by the tennis world ended.
What’s next?
Many people now speculate what’s next for the Tennis world, is it the end of an Era? And the start of a new one? Others speculate who is next on the retirement train? Will it be Federer’s biggest rival and friend Rafeal Nadal? Or Federer’s other rival, Novak Djokovic? It’s not a matter of if, but when. No matter how much we love to see our favorite players on the grounds, playing and winning Championships, it is inevitable that one day they will call it quits. Of course we hope it’s never, the best thing we can do is treasure them, enjoy their future games as much as possible, and make unforgettable memories during their matches.