Roger Federer remains tenniss biggest box-office star and most powerful figure behind the scenes - even at 32 Former world No 1 has the eyes of the world on him despite being in the twilight of his career. What Roger Federer says, still goes The fact that Roger Federer is now 32, and ranked a mere No 4 in the world, does not change his status as the one true king of tennis. Even more than Rafael Nadal, he remains the man most likely to inspire scenes of mass devotion. And yet, he has always been a benevolent ruler. When you think back to his halcyon days in the mid-2000s, the years he was blitzing through 75 victories a season, Federer always claimed his victories in a gentlemanly, sympathetic way. Then, when Nadal started to chip away at his hegemony, he took his reverses with stoicism and grace. Now, as he prepares for the latest phase of his glorious career, we are seeing his sensitive side. In Rome yesterday, Federer spoke about his wife Mirka and his four children with a sense of wonder and gratitude. It is always a privilege to interview him, and all the more so when there is such a joyful subject to discuss. Having finished his practice session on the clay courts of the Foro Italico, Federer marched through the player lounge – a long thin strip of rooms that runs around the circular Campo Centrale – and on towards the interview table. He went past the Scalextric track and the Fussball table, past the hairdressing salon, and all the while players and coaches were coming up to him like iron filings attracted to a magnet, offering their best wishes and shaking his hand. At times like these, you can understand why he is not merely the game’s biggest box-office star, but also the most powerful figure behind the scenes. What Federer says goes. When he decides that prize-money should rise, prize-money rises. When someone is appointed to the top job in men’s tennis, as Britain’s Chris Kermode was at the end of last year, he had better have Federer’s support. Federer spent ten minutes speaking English to the world’s assembled press yesterday, before switching to French and then Swiss and German. Finally, he broke off to give a more detailed account of the past week to the Telegraph. The broadcasters were now buzzing about the interview room, leaving no obvious place to repair to. So we simply stood in a corner of the lounge while various onlookers – not the players, but presumably a few of their guests – formed an impromptu audience. Was Federer a touch weary? It would be understandable in the circumstances. But he also had that blissed-out glow that parents will recognise: the sense that your world has been picked up and turned upside down, and you couldn’t be happier about it. Put simply, he couldn’t stop smiling. Who knows what his tennis will bring this week. He could equally well be unfocused and erratic, or inspired to great heights by his new arrivals. None of it really matters, though. Either way, he plans to go to Paris in a week with his whole family at his side. And in the build-up to the French Open, it will be Federer, even more than the eight-time champion Nadal, who has the eyes of the world on him. - The Telegraph
Posted on: Wed, 14 May 2014 10:05:33 +0000
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