Roger Federer: "And it should hurt!"
Roger Federer said in an interview with GQ magazine about his bitter quarter-final defeat at Wimbledon this year. And explains which inner drive is so important in tennis.
by Michael Rothschädl
last edit:
Sep 28, 2021, 10:26 am
"The standing ovations I received this year were definitely something special. When I left the pitch, I could feel the love and support of the crowd," said Roger Federer, recalling one of the bitter games in his glorious career . With 0: 6, the Swiss set three - and with it the match - lost against the young Pole Hubert Hurkacz. And that in Wimbledon of all places. That tournament that Federer dominated in the past like no one before and after him.
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"Of course it's always difficult to leave the pitch if you lose earlier at Wimbledon than in the final. When you reach a final there is a trophy ceremony, that's more, but if you lose earlier, you pack your things and leave " said Federer to the GQ magazine. "At this point the stage is that of the victorious opponent, in my opinion, not your own."
Federer: the important thing about the defeat
That is why it was particularly important to him to leave the square quickly and to leave the big - and well-deserved - stage to his conqueror, Hubert Hurkacz. With a little distance it is now the gratitude that outweighs, after all, the time before the major in London was one of the hardest of his career. "The double knee surgery I had last year was tough and the rehab was very slow. And in a way, I wish I had been in better shape at Wimbledon this year, but at the end of the day I made it to the quarterfinals . "
Nevertheless, at the moment of defeat, the Swiss were dominated by negative emotions, pain, anger and disappointment. And that's a good thing. "Losing is never fun. And it should hurt. You know, I feel like your days are numbered when you come to terms with defeat. But I think it was a mixture of disappointment, anger about what I was should or could have achieved. "
Olympia-off purely because of the knee
However, there is hardly any room for this in modern tennis, after all, it is important to complete the compulsory press agendas immediately after the defeat: "But that is only of short duration, because then you are in the tunnel and go back to the locker room, and then do you think, “What in the world should I say to the press?” Everything happens very quickly, but I have to say that one of my great strengths is regrouping and quickly re-evaluating the situation and the positive aspects of every decision to see ", said the Swiss.
Who this year had to announce the next bad news a few hours after the end at Wimbledon. The Swiss will miss the Olympic Games, said Federer on social media at the time. The sole reason for this was his injury, the 20-time major winner emphasized today: "The Olympic decision was based solely on the knee, and I knew that I shouldn't play. Of course I would for the Olympic Games and big, big ones Occasions put everything on the line, but no, I wasn't 100 percent. And maybe that's partly an explanation for the face I made at Wimbledon. "