Federer shows his most personal side: ‘It’s nostalgic that everything happened so long ago, that my career doesn’t last that long’

For some time little or nothing has been known about the life of Roger Federer. The few posts he publishes on his social networks are the only sign of the winner of 20 Grand Slam tournaments, confirmed a few weeks ago at the ATP in Basel. That’s why the interview with Cooked Magazine from Switzerland got a lot of attention around the world. And it is that he not only finds the athlete “Rog”, but also clearly shows the human behind the legend.

“I don’t post many photos of the grueling workout because I always saw it as a routine, everyone trains hard. One day, I swore to myself that when my career ended, I wouldn’t be completely broken. Later I would like to go skiing with the children, play football with my teammates, that’s why I do rehabilitation now, it’s not just for tennis. I want to have a life after my career begins to tell Federer, who took more than a year (and two operations) to recover from his right knee injury.

This is why it was inevitable to come to the subject he had to answer if he saw himself competing professionally in the short term. “I can’t think that far, right now I’m waiting for the green light from the doctors, I’m ready to give it my all again. I feel like a racehorse looking for its place again, wanting to run. I hope to play again this summer, I miss coming home in the evening after a hard day of training, being completely exhausted “, replied the Swiss to the delight of his fans.

At 40, for many it’s crazy that he can compete at a high level again, but he doesn’t give up. He says that even before he starts playing, there is a whole ritual that helps him take care of his body. A shocking routine that he detailed flawlessly. “It’s like a car, you have to turn a thousand screws until the engine runs well. There is mobilization, stretching, warming up in the morning, all of this lasts about 45 minutes. Then we go to the track, a half hour warm up, then I stretch, strengthen my ankles with straps, then I warm up again, do calisthenics and explosive speed drills. Before playing, I try to take care of my body for about two and a half hours “, spear.

In the middle of the conversation, Rafael Nadal and the conquest of the Australian Open, also appears in the discussion. “It’s incredibly inspiring when someone comes back from so many health issues. Rafa and I talk on the phone from time to time, we talk a lot. I knew he wasn’t having a good time, but he did anyway, so I was really happy for him. The effort he has put in is immense, today the simple fact of preparing for a match already takes many hours Federer added.

But much of the interview focused on the Swiss’ personal life, his outlook on things and the passage of time. Without shame or fear, the Swiss showed his most human side, the one that hides behind the tennis superstar.

“Sounds like an interesting step to me, I’m happy to be 40, I’m looking forward to whatever’s to come. Sometimes I get a little nostalgic that this all happened so long ago, that my career probably won’t last that long, but it was an incredibly good time. I hope to relive all of this in one way or another. I would love to relive the first hits, what madness. Or being with people who aren’t around anymore, like Peter Carter, my coach and friend who taught me so much. I keep having flashes of him “, Federer began to reflect when asked how he is living this new stage of his life, the one in which his family is the most important thing.

In this sense, he kept talking about his current feelings. “Being a good father is the challenge of my life. Teenagers have a lot on their minds, everything becomes more complicated, more emotional, deeper. I think it’s kinda cute, but it kind of alienates me a bit more. As parents we have to make a greater effort to solve the problems, even if it is also the first time that I am in charge of 13 year old girls and almost 8 year old boys, this whole territory is new for me “, completed.

Already when closing the interview, the Swiss insisted on his feelings regarding the war in Ukraine, “Mirka and I are extremely concerned about the state of the world. We passed out. It’s hard to illustrate carefree joy when you’re depressed. Mirka lost her homeland as a child when she came here from Slovakia with her family. She is very hurt by the misery of the refugees. Our foundation wants to help traumatized children ”.

Finally, he answered what he would have liked to do if he had not been a tennis player. “I love music. I wake up with her and go to bed with a chill out sound. At home, it’s me who creates the right atmosphere, in the apartment, in the invitations, in the car, I want to tell the children that they made good music (laughs). In fact, I would have liked to be a DJ. One day I want to buy a DJ set to have fun. I grew up in the techno era of the 90s, I also went to the street parade several times, which was on my birthday in the summer, amazing !” he concluded.