Roger Federer did make his way to Wimbledon this year, after all 바카라 not to compete, mind you, but to take part in a ceremony marking the centenary of Centre Court on Sunday 바카라 and declared his intention to try to return in 2023 with a racket in hand. (More Tennis News)
바카라Just tried to be successful here and represent the sport well. I hope I did that,바카라 said Federer, who won a men바카라s-record eight of his 20 Grand Slam titles at the All England Club and was greeted with a standing ovation. 바카라And I hope I can come back ... one more time.바카라
Instead of the mandatory all-white playing uniform, Federer wore a dark suit and tie, his purple Wimbledon member바카라s badge pinned to a jacket lapel.
The Swiss star, who turns 41 on August 8 and has been sidelined for a year by knee problems, was among more than two dozen winners of singles championships at the grass-court tournament who appeared in the main stadium during a 35-minute tribute to a stadium that opened in 1922.
바카라I바카라ve been lucky enough to play a lot of matches on this court. Feels awkward to be here today in a different type of role,바카라 said Federer, who had participated in every Wimbledon since his main-draw debut in 1999.
바카라But it바카라s great to be here with ... all the other champions. This court has given me my biggest wins, my biggest losses.바카라 His last match anywhere came on July 7, 2021, when he lost at Centre Court in the quarterfinals to Hubert Hurkacz 6-3, 7-6 (4), 6-0.
Soon after, Federer had surgery to repair damage to his meniscus and cartilage in his right knee 바카라 his third operation on that knee in a span of 1 1/2 years. Federer has said he plans to return to tournament action at the Swiss Indoors in October.
바카라Of course I바카라ve missed being here. I would have loved to be here. I knew walking out here last year, it was going to be a tough year ahead. Maybe didn바카라t think it was going to take me this long to come back. But the knee has been rough on me,바카라 he told the crowd.
바카라I didn바카라t know if I should make the trip, but I바카라m happy standing right here, right now.바카라 The whole scene was, in some respects, an infomercial for the Grand Slam event itself.
There were gauzy videos 바카라 three in all 바카라 quips from co-hosts Sue Barker and John McEnroe, performances by Cliff Richard, who used to help kill time by singing during rain delays (a thing of the past, now that Centre Court and No. 1 Court are outfitted with retractable roofs), and Freya Ridings, who sang the 2017 ballad 바카라Lost Without You바카라 while accompanying herself on a white piano placed on the grass near some front-row seats.
Past champions on hand included some still in the brackets this year, such as Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Simona Halep in singles, and Venus Williams in mixed doubles. When it was his turn with the microphone, Djokovic joked: 바카라Gosh, I feel more nervous than when I바카라m playing.바카라
The six-time winner was scheduled to be out there on Centre Court in the fourth round later, which was unusual in its own right: This is the first time in history that the tournament was scheduled as a 14-day event, with play planned for the middle Sunday.
Previously, that was set aside as a day off, and only on four occasions 바카라 in 1991, 1997, 2004 and 2016 바카라 did a backlog of matches created by too much rain lead organizers to add matches on that Sunday.
Andy Murray, whose 2013 Wimbledon singles trophy was the first for a British man in 77 years, Angelique Kerber and Petra Kvitova were other active players present. And there were big names from yesteryear, too, of course: Billie Jean King, Rod Laver, Chris Evert, Bjorn Borg 바카라 he and McEnroe, fierce rivals in the 1980s, hugged each other 바카라 Stefan Edberg and Goran Ivanisevic.
Also listed by the club as attending: the son of Leslie Godfree, who delivered the first serve in the first match at Centre Court in 1922, and the grandson of Algernon Kingscote, Godfree바카라s opponent that day.
Absent were three of the winningest players in tournament history: Martina Navratilova (who tested positive for COVID-19 and wrote on Twitter she was 바카라gutted바카라 to miss the occasion), Serena Williams and Pete Sampras. Navratilova바카라s nine singles championships are a Wimbledon record; Williams, who lost in the first round last week, and Sampras, who retired in 2002, each won it seven times.
