Federer reveals breakdown in Bogota
Tennis superstar Roger Federer has revealed he suffered a ‘‘bit of a breakdown’’ during his recent tour of Mexico and South America.
The pressure got to the cool Swiss player after rioting in Colombian capital Bogota forced him to cancel his exhibition match against German’s Alexander Zverev.
His plight is part of a new documentary Roger Federer: Everywhere is Home, produced by ESPN.
The film features the 38-yearold’s match in a Mexico City bullring where 42,517 fans, a world record crowd for a tennis match, watched him play Zverev.
But when the pair reached the Colombian capital of Bogota for a sequel, things turned nasty with political demonstrations and riots filling the streets.
Reluctantly Federer decided the situation wasn’t safe despite a large crowd already gathered for the rematch.
The documentary shows Federer walking back to the changing rooms where he broke down in tears and was hugged by Zverev.
‘‘We went to warm up and were having a blast on the court, but then everything started to get a bit crazy,’’ Federer says on Everywhere is Home.
‘‘I was thinking is this the best scenario? Because people need to get home and be safe and this was honestly when I knew we shouldn’t play, it was too much stress and pressure for everybody.
‘‘I had a bit of a breakdown. It was not going to be the dream match it was supposed to have been and I could feel it all falling apart at the end. When I came back [to the locker room] I was emotionally wasted.’’
But the general feeling from the tour of Chile, Argentina, Colombia, Ecuador and Mexico – rare destinations for Federer – was positive.
‘‘It was an unbelievable and amazing trip, each step along the way as the fans expressed their love of the sport and appreciation for the experience,’’ Federer said from a film that has fans weeping at the sight of him.
‘‘There were so many highlights, it was truly a magical adventure and a blast as well.’’