From a ball boy to a 20 Grand Slam titles holder. What a journey this has been for the 42-year-old Swiss Maestro, Roger Federer. He has been the epitome of elegance throughout his 24-year career span. Federer recently reflected on how his life changed after his first major triumph. Let’s find out.
Roger Federer has been ranked world number one in men’s singles for almost 310 weeks with a record of 237 consecutive weeks. He has won the year-end championship 6 times in his career and ended the year as number 1, five times in his career. Despite all these achievements, the first taste of victory at majors will always hold a special place in his heart.
Roger Federer reflects on his life after winning a Grand Slam title Roger Federer played his first junior match at the age of 14 in a Grade 2 tournament in his homeland. He became a Wimbledon junior champion in 1998. This was Federer’s fourth junior singles title. Then he got a taste of his first victory at the biggest stage in 2003, when he won the Wimbledon Championships at the age of 21. This marked the start of what would turn out to be an illustrious career. He went on to feature in 21 out of 28 majors in 6 years after that.
Q: Has the meaning of playing tennis changed for you after winning the grand slam? #RogerFederer : “Yeah, my life changed completely after winning a Grand Slam. All of a sudden, I was not just the tennis player from Switzerland I became a global icon, superstar. — hanay (@hanaycp) December 3, 2023
When he was asked to explain how the meaning of playing tennis changed for him after winning the Grand Slam, here’s what he said. “Yeah, my life changed completely after winning a Grand Slam. All of a sudden, I was not just the tennis player from Switzerland I became a global icon, superstar.”
Roger Federer has undoubtedly been a global icon, but he also has been a very humble icon. The beginning of an incredible phase in Federer’s life started here, however, his attitude towards life helped him sustain his greatness. However, when it comes to consistency in tennis itself, is someone better than Federer? Former coach of Serena Willams says yes.
Roger Federer became the first singles player to reach the landmark of 20 Grand Slam titles. He was also the oldest number one in men’s singles at the age of 36. But now Novak Djokovic also shares the record with him. However, a key difference between these two tennis giants was brought to light by Patrick Mourtagoglou.
The Difference between Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic The former coach of Serena Williams has found a major difference between the two legends of the game at the age of 36. Patrick Mourtagoglou believes ‘consistency’ is the key differentiator of Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer when they were at the same age.
The Serbian is currently the world number one and has won three out of four Grand Slams this year at the age of 36. On the other hand, the Swiss had managed to clinch only two out of four Grand Slam titles at 36. Mouratoglou praised Novak Djokovic for maintaining such a high standard of fitness level even in the late thirties. Now, since Federer has already taken retirement last year, it’ll be interesting to see where the other one ends.