Federer’s star power shines beyond tennis
World’s No. 1 player makes stop in Bay Area for education fundraiser
Move over, Bruce. Step aside, Madonna. Sorry, Jumbo Joe.
There have been a lot of superstars who have played inside SAP Center over the years. But the rock-star welcome that Roger Federer received Monday night probably was near the top.
The Bay Area likes star power. And, finally, the Bay Area got a chance to witness the biggest star in the tennis galaxy.
Federer had not played here. The only time he had ever even visited the Bay Area was a one-day trip to Google.
But on Monday night, he
packed SAP Center, in Match for Africa 5, a fundraiser for the Roger Federer Foundation. A few Silicon Valley types might have been on hand to see Microsoft founder Bill Gates goofing around on the court in shorts, as doubles partner to tennis’ greatest player.
Naw, probably not. Federer was the star.
When the match was announced, one of Federer’s people asked me how I thought it would draw, given that it was on a Monday night. Traffic would be terrible (it was). It was a work night, a school night.
Didn’t matter. Unlike the last time elite tennis was played here — at the SAP Open in 2013 — there was no need to curtain off a large portion of the arena. The upper bowl was packed, as were the suites and all seats near the floor. The event was a sellout with more than 15,000 tickets sold. It was a high-end crowd, drawing some other athletes like Joe Thornton and Zaza Pachulia.
The introductions were so over the top — with swirling smoke and “Star Wars” music — they could make Pachulia and his Warriors teammates blush.
When Federer finally stepped onto the court — with thousands of smart phones pointed at him — the place went crazy.
It was a goofy, lighthearted night. First, there was an exhibition match between Federer and Gates versus the “Olympic” team of “Today” show host Savannah Guthrie and Jack Sock, the 10th-ranked player in the world (who won Olympic gold in mixed doubles).
The opponent’s strategy? From Guthrie: “Don’t look at Roger.” And Sock? “Don’t hit it to Roger.”
Team Federer strategy? Gates “knows numbers very well, so he never makes a mistake on the score,” Federer said. “I’ll do the running and he’ll do the thinking.”
It was entertaining. At one point, Federer was on his knees at the net, volleying with Sock. Guthrie whiffed on so many balls that the crowd started rooting for her.
Federer won the Australian Open in January, his record 20th Grand Slam title. He returned to the No. 1 ranking in the world last month for the first time in more than five years. At 36, he is the oldest player to hold the top ranking.
“The dream as a little boy was to make it one day to world No. 1,” he said. “But not at 36 years old, I can tell you that.”
As he’s gotten older, Federer has realized that there’s a huge market of fans who want to see him. And that he can turn all that interest and adoration into something worthwhile.
“When you come on tour as a young player, you’re just happy to be a tennis player and be out there,” Federer told me earlier this year. “Then I asked myself, ‘What do I want to do besides play tennis?’ I wanted to do something on my own and not just donate a racket.”
He settled on raising money for education in South Africa, the country where his mother is from. He started small, with one project, but the effort has grown. To date, his foundation has served 870,000 kids: the goal is to reach a million children by the end of the year. It was announced that Monday’s event raised $2.5 million for the foundation.
Federer chose education because he knew he was privileged, having received a superior education because he was lucky enough to grow up in Switzerland. The endeavor to provide education to those less fortunate has become only more important to him as he has raised his children, twin 8-year-old girls and twin 3year-old boys.
In the singles exhibition, between Sock and Federer, the fun continued. At one point, a ball girl stood in for Sock and traded shots with Federer. When the first set went to a tiebreak, a voice in the crowd shouted, “No pressure, Jack!” Sock turned and gave the heckler a death stare. After all, he had never won a set from Federer. And he wouldn’t Monday. Federer gave the fans what they wanted: winning and entertaining.
“I’m loving every moment I can still stay on tour,” he said. “You never know when it’s going to end.”
Fortunately for the Bay Area, he got here before it ended.
Pure star power.
“I wanted to do something on my own and not just donate a racket.” Roger Federer, 20-time Grand Slam winner