“I would do everything the same way again”: Roger Federer leaves the big tennis stage.
Bild: Action Images via Reuters
A career comes to an end with great emotions, in which titles were ultimately less important than a global feeling. There could not have been a better final chapter for Roger Federer.
In the first hour of Saturday morning, Roger Federer’s glorious career ended in a sea of emotions. More than 24 years after it began, after 1526 singles and 224 doubles games, Rafael Nadal ended up losing, but victory or defeat was never less important than in the blue-red waves of the London Arena .
It was clear from the beginning that this story would not end without tears, because tears had flowed again and again in Federer’s career, after victories and defeats. There were moving moments after the end of the farewell gala; the warm hugs with colleagues from both teams, the lap of honor in the spotlight, the ovations of the audience. But the picture of the friendly rivals Federer and Nadal sitting next to each other on the bench sobbing, one as moved as the other, would have struck even a knight in armor right in the heart.
