Tennis legend Roger Federer announces his retirement from top level tennis after next weeks Laver Cup

One of the greatest players of all time, Roger Federer has announced that he will be retiring from top level tennis after next weeks Laver Cup in London.

The 20-time Grand Slam champion hasn’t played since Wimbledon last year, after which he had a third knee operation.

The Swiss legend has played more than 1,500 matches over 24 years, but the 41-year-old has never recovered from knee problems which he has had to suffer for the past three years, which has restricted his participation in only three of the 11 Slams staged since 2020.

His last competitive match was back at Wimbledon last summer where he lost to Hubert Hurkacz in the quarter-finals.

Federer will live long in the memory of tennis fans around the world for his ultra-competitive spirit that he took with him whenever he set foot on any surface.

Only Spain’s Rafael Nadal with 22 majors and Novak Djokovic with 21, have won more men’s Grand Slam singles titles than Federer.

The Fed made his professional debut aged 16 in 1998 and won his first Grand Slam title at Wimbledon in 2003 when he beat Australian Mark Philippoussis in straight sets. The first of eight men’s singles victories at the All England Club.

Federer’s final Grand Slam triumph came at the 2018 Australian Open when at the age of 36 he become the second oldest man to win a major singles title in the Open era.

The Swiss reached number one for the first time in 2004 and also spent 310 weeks as the leading player on the ATP Tour during his career, a record until recently beaten by Djokovic in February 2021.

Alongside Stan Wawrinka, the pair won Olympics doubles gold for Switzerland at Beijing 2008 and singles silver at London 2012.

He was also part of the Swiss team that won the Davis Cup for the first time in 2014 and lifted a record six ATP Finals titles.

Federer will be part of the Europe team taking on a team representing the rest of the world at the three-day Laver Cup taking place at the O2 Arena in London starting on Friday.

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