Roger Federer Retires With Laver Cup Loss After Teaming With Rafael Nadal In Last Match

This day, this match, had to come, of course, for Roger Federer, and for tennis, just as it inevitably must for every athlete in every sport. (More Tennis News)

Federer bid adieu Friday night with one last contest before he heads into retirement at age 41 after a superlative career that spanned nearly a quarter-century and included 20 Grand Slam titles and a statesman바카라�s role.

He wrapped up his days as a professional player with a loss in doubles alongside his longtime rival Rafael Nadal for Team Europe in the Laver Cup against Frances Tiafoe and Jack Sock of Team World. The truth is that the victors, the statistics and the score (OK, for the record it was 4-6, 7-6 (2), 11-9) did not matter, and were all so entirely beside the point.

The occasion was, after all, about the farewell itself. Or, better, the farewells, plural: Federer바카라�s to tennis, to the fans, to his competitors and colleagues. And, naturally, each of those entities바카라� farewells to Federer. 바카라�It바카라�s been a perfect journey,바카라� Federer said. 바카라�I would do it all over again.바카라�

When the match and, with it, his time in professional tennis ended, Federer hugged Nadal, then Tiafoe and Sock. And then Federer began crying. There were plenty of tears to go around; Nadal wiped his own away, too.

바카라�When Roger leaves the tour, an important part of my life is leaving, too,바카라� said Nadal, 36, who used the words 바카라�sad바카라� and 바카라�unforgettable바카라� to describe the occasion.

As cascades of clapping and yells of affection came from the stands, Federer put his hands on his hips, his chest heaving. Then he mouthed, 바카라�Thank you,바카라� while applauding right back toward the spectators who had chanted, 바카라�Let바카라�s go, Roger! Let바카라�s go!바카라� during the concluding moments of a match that lasted more than two hours and ended at about 12:30 AM.

His wife, Mirka, their four children 바카라� twin girls and twin boys 바카라� and Federer바카라�s parents joined him on the court afterward for embraces and, yes, more bawling. Members of both teams joined together to hoist Federer up in the air.

바카라�It바카라�s been a wonderful day. I told the guys I바카라�m happy; I바카라�m not sad,바카라� Federer said. 바카라�I enjoyed tying my shoes one more time. Everything was the last time.바카라�

The Swiss star announced last week that the three-day team event, which was founded by his management company, would be his final event before retirement, then made clear the doubles outing would be the last match.

His surgically repaired right knee 바카라� the last of three operations came shortly after a loss in the Wimbledon quarterfinals in July 2021, which will go down as his official exit in singles 바카라� is in no shape to allow him to continue.

바카라�For me, just personally, (it was) sad in the first moment, when I came to the conclusion it바카라�s the best decision,바카라� Federer said in an interview with The Associated Press this week about his emotions when realizing it was time to go. 바카라�I kind of held it in at first, then fought it off. But I could feel the pain.바카라�

He had said he wanted this to feel more like a party than a funeral, and the crowd obliged, rising for a loud and lengthy standing ovation when Federer and Nadal 바카라� each wearing a white bandanna, blue shirt and white shorts 바카라� emerged together from a tunnel leading out to the black court for the last match on Day 1 at the O2 Arena. They remained on their feet for nearly 10 minutes, through the pre-match warmup, holding aloft phone cameras to capture the moment.

They came ready to roar for him, some with Swiss flags, some with homemade signs (바카라�Idol Forever바카라� read one), and they made themselves heard with a wall of sound when Federer delivered a forehand volley winner on the match바카라�s second point.

Similar reactions arrived merely at the chair umpire바카라�s announcement before the third game of 바카라�Roger Federer to serve,바카라� and again when he closed that game with a 117 mph service winner.

바카라�Obviously had 99.9% of the crowd against us. But it was super fun to just be a part of that match. I think we are going to be forever grateful to be a part of the GOAT바카라�s final match,바카라� Sock said, using the acronym for 바카라�Greatest of All-Time.바카라�

Doubles requires far less movement and court coverage, of course, so the stress on Federer바카라�s knee was limited Friday. 바카라�Honestly,바카라� he said, acknowledging that leading into the match there were the sorts of nerves he바카라�d get before a Grand Slam final, 바카라�I was so surprised how well I was able to play tonight.바카라�

He showed touches of his old flair, to be sure, and of rust, as to be expected. There were a couple of early forehands that sailed several feet too long. There also was a forehand that slid right between Sock and Tiafoe and seemed too good to be true 바카라� and, it turned out, was: The ball traveled through a gap below the net tape and so the point was taken away from Federer and Nadal.

Although this match amounted to, essentially, a glorified exhibition, all four doubles participants played as if they wanted to win. That was clear when Sock, a three-time major champion in doubles who is 29, leaped and screamed after one particularly terrific volley or when Tiafoe, 24, sent a couple of shots right at Federer and Nadal.

There were moments of levity. Federer and Nadal were able to laugh after a bit of confusion over which should go for a ball on a point they lost. After Nadal somehow flicked one back-to-the-net shot around the post, only for it to land barely wide, Tiafoe, a semifinalist at the U.S. Open, crossed over to extend a hand with congratulations for the effort.

In the first set, the older duo couldn바카라�t quite hear each other between points, so Federer trotted from the net back to the baseline to consult with Nadal, then pointed to his ear to signal what the issue was.

Before Federer began winning Grand Slam titles in 2003, the men바카라�s mark for most major tennis championships was 14 by Pete Sampras.

Federer blew past that, accumulating eight at Wimbledon, six at the Australian Open, five at the U.S. Open and one at the French Open, setting a new standard that Nadal, now with 22, and Novak Djokovic, with 21, equaled, then surpassed, as part of a golden era for the sport.

Surely, there are those who would have found it particularly apt to see Federer finish across the net from Nadal, often an on-court nemesis but eventually an off-court friend.

Maybe it could have taken place about 15 miles away at Centre Court of the All England Club, say, or in Court Philippe Chatrier at Roland Garros, or Rod Laver Arena at Melbourne Park, or even Arthur Ashe Stadium, the centerpiece of the U.S. Open, the lone Grand Slam tournament at which they never faced off, somehow.

Perhaps they could have provided everyone with one final installment of a head-to-head matchup as memorable as any in the long history of their sport 바카라� or, indeed, any other.

Roger vs. Rafa 바카라� just one name apiece required 바카라� belongs up there with McEnroe vs. Borg (as it happens, the two Laver Cup team captains, John and Bjorn), Evert vs. Navratilova, Sampras vs. Agassi, Ali vs. Frazier, Magic vs. Bird, Brady vs. Manning, and so on.

Over the years, Federer and Nadal showed off individual greatness and compelling contrasts across their 40 matches, 14 at Grand Slam tournaments, nine in major finals: righty vs. lefty, attacker vs. grinder, seeming effortlessness vs. relentless intensity.

And yet, there was an unmistakable element of poetry with these two men who challenged each other and elevated each other performing as partners, slapping palms and sharing smiles.

This goodbye follows that of Serena Williams, the owner of 23 major singles championships, at the U.S. Open three weeks ago after a third-round loss. It leaves questions about the future of a game he and she dominated, and transcended, for decades.

One key difference: Each time Williams took the court in New York, the looming question was how long her stay would endure 바카라� a 바카라�win or this is it바카라� prospect. Friday WAS it for Federer, no matter the result.

바카라�All the players will miss him,바카라� said Casper Ruud, who beat Sock in singles 6-4, 5-7, 10-7. The day바카라�s other results, which left Team Europe and Team World tied at 2-2: Stefanos Tsitsipas defeated Diego Schwartzman 6-2, 6-1 in a match interrupted briefly when an environmental protester lit a portion of the court and his own arm on fire, and Alex de Minaur got past Andy Murray 5-7, 6-3, 10-7.

Due to begin playing shortly after the end of Murray바카라�s loss, Federer and Nadal first provided him with some coaching tips, then watched part of that one on TV together in a room at the arena, waiting for their turn. When Federer and Nadal were in action, it was Djokovic바카라�s turn to suggest strategy.

The last hurrah came after a total of 103 career singles trophies and 1,251 wins in singles matches for Federer, both second only to Jimmy Connors in the Open era, which began in 1968. At the height of his powers, Federer appeared in a record 10 consecutive Grand Slam finals, winning eight, from 2005-07. Extend that to 2010, and he reached 18 of 19 major finals.

More than those numbers, folks will remember the powerful forehand, the one-handed backhand, the flawless footwork, the spectacularly effective serve and eagerness to get to the net, the willingness to reinvent aspects of his game and 바카라� the part of which he바카라�s proudest 바카라� the unusual longevity. Beyond the elegance and effectiveness while wielding a racket, Federer바카라�s persona made him an ambassador for tennis, someone whose immense popularity helped attract fans.

바카라�This is not the end-end, you know. Life goes on. I바카라�m healthy, I바카라�m happy, everything바카라�s great,바카라� Federer said, 바카라�and this is just a moment in time.바카라�