It’s hard to perceive a time where the tennis world wasn’t dominated by Roger Federer. Certainly, talent housed in the defensive work of Novak Djokovic or physical stamina of Nadal have come to maintain top spot in the men’s competition for seasons at a time, but even so Federer has remained right up there, merely a sniff away from victory. And when he has cemented his place atop the leader board, his winning streaks are exhausting, seemingly-endless, such a certainty that it seems defeat meets his opponents before they’ve even stepped foot on court. With 20 Grand Slam titles and 310 weeks ranked number one, it’s hard not to label Federer the Greatest of All Time.
But though 2021 should have been a big year for Federer, March marked 13 months since Federer had taken to the court due to a lingering knee injury. With Federer set to turn 40 this year, many have come to the realisation that time is not on his side. He may have defied the odds when he clambered up the ranks at a relatively more mature age than most of his counterparts, but having gone through significant strain with his recent injury, it seems likely that retirement is on the cards for Federer – sooner, rather than later.
You forget though, that this is a man who has made a career out of the improbable. His athleticism seems other-worldly, shots he returns and wins seem so unlikely as to go in his favour that it led writer David Foster Wallace to liken the joy of watching Federer play tennis to a “religious experience”. This is a man who won his last Grand Slam title at 36, who became the oldest player to win Wimbledon at 35-years-old, and the oldest to reach the number one ATP ranking at 36, too. If anyone can forge a comeback, it’s Federer. But whether he does or doesn’t will have little standing on the incredible legacy he has already carved. Here, we take a look back at his eight greatest moments in the sport.
