Federer claims that after winning the Laver Cup, he “won’t be a stranger” to tennis

The legendary Swiss tennis player Roger Federer was honored at the Laver Cup on Friday. He praised his last career match in the competition from a year ago as the ideal way to end his career.

At Rogers Arena, home of the NHL’s Vancouver Canucks, where Team World, led by Patrick McEnroe, defeated Bjorn Borg’s Team Europe on day one to take a 4-0 lead in the tournament that Federer helped to establish in 2017, Federer earned cheers from the spectators.

After answering audience questions on the court, the 20-time Grand Slam winner said that it had been a “great year” since he and lifelong foe Rafael Nadal lost in doubles in Roger Federer’s last match.

The 42-year-old remarked, “I felt the goodbye was lovely, it was amazing, and it was heartbreaking. “I had been anticipating this time for years… I was concerned that my death would somehow not be pleasant, but it was the exact opposite.

He said that he missed the thrill of the match, including the hordes of spectators, trophy-raising, break points, and match points.

He noted his presence in the royal box this year at Wimbledon, the site of some of his greatest victories, and at the grass-court competition in Halle, Germany, saying, “I still get those moments from time to time.

Federer said, “I made a vow to myself that I would not be a stranger on the circuit.

He didn’t indicate how he may be involved in the match, but he underlined — in answer to a query from Borg — that it might be as the captain of Laver Cup Team Europe.

Federer said that apart from his work on initiatives for his humanitarian foundation, he and his wife Mirka have their hands full raising their four children.

He was at the UN this week before traveling to Vancouver to talk about early learning and development initiatives for disadvantaged kids.

Being at home more has also been lovely, he said.