Farewell to a tennis giant: Federer ends his career with defeat in doubles alongside Nadal in the Laver Cup

Federer had the serve in hand in the 'super tie break' to say goodbye with a victory, but the most important thing was the tribute to the 41-year-old tennis player with 20 Grand Slam titles, who was emotional after the end of the match.

Perhaps the farewell was not the one dreamed of by Federer and his great friend Nadal, who on the circuit are known by the acronym 'Fedal', as it did not end with victory, but despite the Laver Cup not being an official competition, Sock and Tiafoe they fought for the result to tie the tournament at 2-2, in which a team from Europe and another from the rest of the world face each other.

In a balanced first set, with an advantage for the servers, both teams maintained their service and everything was decided in the end: the Americans did not take advantage of a 'break point' to stay ahead on the scoreboard, in a move that Federer saved with a 'smash', and in the next game the Europeans didn't forgive and managed the break to make it 1-0.

In the second set, the service of both pairs lost effectiveness and there were 'breaks' from side to side until the decisive moment arrived.

With 5-5 and Nadal serving, the Europeans saved six break chances from the Americans and were just one game away from victory, but Sock and Tiafoe managed to close at 7-6.

As if it were a Hollywood script, with 9-8 for Federer and Nadal In the 'match tie break', the Swiss had a serve in his hand to declare victory, but he sent a right into the net and the Americans didn't waste the mistake.

Tears

“It was a wonderful day. I told the guys that I'm happy, not sad,” said Federer, who had to stop speaking on several occasions during his speech because he couldn't contain his emotions and cried, especially when he thanked his parents, his wife, Mirka, and his children. , all present to say goodbye.

“She (Mirka) could have stopped me a long, long time ago, but she didn't and allowed me to continue. It was incredible, thank you”, said the Swiss about his wife’s support throughout his career.

“Playing with Rafa and having all these great (players) here, all these legends… Thank you!”, he managed to say at another point, adding that he “enjoyed a lot” every moment of the farewell, the pre-game rituals and entering the court once again. time, despite recognizing that he was not in great shape.

Federer's tears after the match were joined by those of Nadal, those of the 17 spectators who filled the O2 Arena in London and those of all of Federer's fans. Tennis, which saw the closing of a chapter in the history of the sport with the retirement of one of the best players to ever wield a racket.

(with AFP)