Have we seen the last of Federer?

THE gracefulness, that was the thing. The way he floated and glided around the place. Nothing ever seemingly any trouble. Nothing ever seemingly that much of a struggle. He seemed to us the epitome of the natural talent.

No doubt he worked hard to get where he was and to stay where he was for as long as he did. Still though, his was a game built as much on technique and vision as on power and pace. He never exuded the raw physicality of a Rafael Nadal or the dogged-determination of a Novak Djokovic; he was uniquely himself. Roger Federer was – still is! – the ultimate gentleman sportsman and we love him for it. His grace on court matched only by his grace off it. Hands down he’s the single most universally beloved sports person in the world. His longevity a source of wonder and comfort for a lot of us.

Yes, the big three’s continued dominance over the sport is somewhat problematic as we’ve discussed here before, but if you couldn’t get enjoyment out of watching Federer float like a butterfly and sting like a bee on Centre Court in his pristine whites, then tennis probably isn’t the sport for you.

When the news filtered through last week that the All England club had called off this year’s Championships, beyond the initial disappointment that this dreadful disease had robbed us another little piece of our sporting summer, the realisation stuck us: might we have already seen the last of Federer on Centre Court?

We’ve got to be realistic here. Federer – despite still being hugely competitive (he was in the semi-final of the Australian Open already this year) – is at the winding down stage of his glorious career (twenty Grand Slam titles).

The Swiss is thirty-eight years of age. By the time the tennis circuit returns again to SW-19 (much nicer than COVID-19 we’re sure you’ll agree), the eight-time Championship winner will be thirty nine years of age. Not to put too fine a point on it that’s getting on for a professional sports person. To be honest it’s not even the age, it’s the age coupled with the lack of competitive action. Federer has been able to stay at or near the top of his game because – bar the odd injury – he’s been able to compete. With the circuit ground to a halt, there’s every chance he’ll lose his edge. Obviously we hope we’re wrong, we hope we’ll see Federer back again, but there’s a very real chance we won’t and his epic five-set final defeat to Djokovic last July will have been the last time we’ll see him at the All England Club. That’s just not right.