Former tennis icon Rodger Federer remains one of the greatest athletes to have graced the court. His excellent repertoire saw the Swiss star winning 20 Grand Slam titles in his career.
Even after retirement Federer’s measure of influence remains undisputable, as he was the only player to have the Wimbledon title five times from 2003 to 2007 on-the-trot – a record only matched by Bjorn Borg. No other tennis player has won two separate Grand Slams five times in-a-row. Recently, the Swiss legend has opened up about a certain decision taken early in his teens that would eventually shape his career.
Federer’s crucial decision at 16 that shaped his tennis triumph
Roger Federer granted an exclusive interview with GQ, in which the former Swiss tennis legend opened up about the beginnings of his career. In an interesting part of the interview, the 8-time Wimbledon champion revealed how he had a deal with his parents to give his tennis career a real chance after leaving school at 16.
Federer told, “That’s a good question. At the beginning of my career, I received feedback pretty quickly that I was actually quite good at what I was doing. At the beginning, it is of course difficult to assess this and you hardly dare to really believe it.”
“And as soon as you slowly become a little more self-confident and think, hmm, maybe I’m really good, you’ll get punched in the nose, you can be sure of that. As a teenager, you already go through a rollercoaster of emotions and when you add a career in competitive sports to the mix, you really have to take care of yourself.”
“When I was 14, I left home and attended a performance centre. Those were probably the two most important years of my life. I learned so much about life. At the age of 16, I decided to stop school. I tried online classes for a few months but then realized pretty quickly that both weren’t possible and that I had to put everything on one card”, Roger Federer added.
“I had a deal with my parents to give tennis a realistic chance and if it didn’t work out, to go back to school straight away and without complaining. What can I say, something has happened.”, Federer concluded.
Roger Federer is hailed as the ‘king of grass’ and thrice, in 2006, 2007 and 2009, he reached the finals of all four Grand Slams in a single year, a feat no other male tennis player has managed to match till date.
When did Roger Federer win his first Grand Slam?
Roger Federer won his first Grand Slam title at the 2003 Wimbledon Championships, after defeating Mark Philippoussis in an intense final. Though he dominated on grass and hard courts, Roger Federer had to wait a while to win his first Major on clay. The win at the 2009 French Open helped the Swiss ace complete his Career Grand Slam six years after his maiden Major triumph.
Federer, the London 2012 Olympic men’s singles silver medalist and Beijing 2008 men’s doubles champion, won his final Grand Slam at the 2018 Australian Open. Federer’s final appearance at the Grand Slam final came at the 2019 Wimbledon, where he was edged out by Djokovic in the tiebreaker after a marathon match.
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