Roger Federer to retire from tennis

Roger Federer, the racket-throwing Swiss teenager who matured into one of the world’s most polished athletes and was part of a generation that dominated tennis for two decades, announced Thursday that he would retire from competition.

Roger Federer will retire next week at 41 after the Laver Cup in London, marking the end of one of the greatest ever sporting careers.

“I am 41 years old. I have played more than 1500 matches over 24 years. Tennis has treated me more generously than I ever would have dreamt, and now I must recognize when it is time to end my competitive career,” the 20-time grand slam winner said in an Instagram post.

For a large period, Federer held the men’s record for total grand slam titles, outpacing his idol, Pete Sampras, the previous record holder whose count of 14 was once considered to be almost untouchable.

Throughout his career, he unlocked other records that stand as a marker of his consistency and excellence, such as reaching 23 consecutive grand slam semi-finals and 36 consecutive quarter-finals. Federer has won 103 ATP singles titles, 28 ATP Masters titles, and six ATP Finals. Of his 1,526 matches on the ATP tour, he compiled a 1251-275 (82%) singles record.

The last few years of Federer’s career have been marred by a series of injuries, as he underwent two knee surgeries in 2020 and another after he was defeated by Hubert Hurkacz in the 2021 Wimbledon quarterfinal – his last competitive match to date.

Pardafas Reporter

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