Roger Federer was the picture of disappointment after this weekend’s Laver Cup defeat with Tiafoe’s epic comeback denying the Swiss tennis legend one final trophy.
A 1-6, 7-6, 10-8 victory over Stefanos Tsitsipas helped Team World hoist the trophy after 5 years of falling short to Team Europe.
Tiafoe’s incredible win saw John McEnroe’s imperious men hit the 13-point mark first on a dramatic and thrilling final day at the O2 Stadium where they claimed a maiden Laver Cup by a 13-8 score line. It was Tiafoe who teamed up with Jack Sock on Friday night to beat Federer and Rafael Nadal in an emotional doubles contest which brought the curtain down on the 20-time grand-slam champion’s glittering professional career, and it was the American who again made the difference 48 hours later.
For Federer, despite everything he has achieved, which includes eight Wimbledon titles, defeat still hurt.
“Yeah, of course I’m disappointed. I was on the team, almost lost my voice and my hands hurt from clapping. We wish the result would be different. I told Andy [Murray] in the locker room, I don’t like losing. It’s not fun. It just leaves not the best taste, you know. I think once you have been there and taste success, it’s just not the same.
I hope tonight can be still somewhat of an enjoyable evening. Of course this weekend has been all over the place for me. I enjoyed it, but it’s unfortunate that we couldn’t get the win.”
Chasing just one more
Going into the third and final day of the competition, Federer still had hopes of adding one more title to his illustrious list of trophies with Team Europe leading 8-4.
Felix Auger-Aliassime had other ideas for Team World with success over Andy Murray and Matteo Berrettini in the doubles alongside Sock and followed that up with an even bigger display in the second match. Auger-Aliassime stunned Novak Djokovic 6-3, 7-6 to get Team World back in the fight and just one win away from the trophy.
It was over to Tiafoe to finish the job but he lost the first set in 21 minutes to a fired-up Tsitsipas. The Greek could not keep his momentum going unfortunately and, after losing a tie-breaker longer than the entire Lord of the Rings Trilogy, it meant a deciding set was on the cards.
During the 10-point tie-breaker for the match – and ultimately the trophy – Tiafoe displayed remarkable resolve and played some outrageously good tennis. He made a drop shot despite starting behind the baseline and also saved four match points to help Team World make history, which in the process spoiled Federer’s farewell once again.
A tearful, triumphant farewell to one of the game’s greatest.
With Federer gone, it’s tough to know who I’ll be placing my bets on. For 13 years, I’ve been able to back my Swiss horse and more often than not, come out with a deeper pocket.
There aren’t enough adjectives in the world to describe Roger’s career, and so many journalists have given it a try over the past couple of days, but one thing I’ll say is that he’s ultimate proof that nice guys can indeed finish first. Tennis has been defined by some iconic villains, McEnroe and his on-court antics come to mind and more recently Nick Kyrgios and his inflammatory, provocative approach aren’t far off.
But Roger’s grace and style are unlike any other. Not to mention his forehand – famously described by David Foster as ‘liquid whip’. His pin-point serve, his effortless, sometimes miraculous one-handed backhand. Compare him to a prima-ballerina, a ballroom phenom, a tireless titan or gentleman of the game – whichever words you choose, if any of them are negative you don’t appreciate good sport, or good sportsmanship.
Now, over and above my borderline embarrassing gushing, let’s talk about the stats. There is so much data on Federer’s reign of terror you can lose yourself for days. Let’s start with the 20 grand slams, which is an incredible feat, but for me the most impressive was that he made the semi-finals of a grand slam 23 times in a row without missing a tournament due to injury or choice. Stamina and consistency personified.
For anybody else to achieve the same level, current world number one, Carlos Alcaraz would need to play and reach the final four in every slam until the French Open in 2028 to equal it.
Statistically, or emotionally, it’s incredibly difficult to dispute the fact that Federer is one of the greatest, if not THE greatest, of all time. If you don’t want to take my word for it – we were gifted to one of the most moving moments in sport this weekend when, after playing his final match, Roger was sat next to his longest and greatest rival, Rafa Nadal, both men in tears. Imagine being as good at what you do and who you are that your longstanding adversary mourns your departure from the game. Sport is an environment where you may respect your opponent, but you really should not like them, and certainly not love them.
From a young age we’re taught to want to destroy and belittle our opponents. To dominate them with our chests puffed out. As a rugby fan, I love this side of competition too – but there’s something incredibly moving about the kind of respect and admiration the tennis fraternity has for one another. These chaps play together from an incredibly young age. They’re held to a professional standard from as young as 10 years old. They’ve won together and lost together, beaten each other and suffered defeat at one another’s hands – if anything they’ve got more of a reason to dislike each other. Tennis is deeply personal. It’s a one-on-one game where you have nowhere to hide. And yet, there were Federer and Nadal together, in tears. Two men who, for 18 years, had engaged in competition at the stratospheric level. Nadal was not Federer’s coach or hitting partner. He was the man who frequently hit Federer off the court. Or got hit off the court.
In the six years from the end of 2003 to the start of 2010 Federer was essentially unbeatable – except when he met Nadal, and especially when he met him on clay in Paris. Even worse Nadal then beat Federer at Wimbledon. His fortress.
And here were two who have been against each other for the longest time, not just showing respect of each other, but love.
It says so much about both. Federer you can understand crying, because his career is over – all sportsmen and women do that. But for Nadal to cry says so much about both. How they have played, how they have fought, and how they have not lost their humanity in the throes of trying to unseat the other as the best in the world.
Before his match, Federer last week told the media a story from the beginning of his career when one of his coaches said; “you have to be tougher and not so nice maybe”. He recalled that “I tried, but it was all an act and I said, ‘Well let me try the nice way. Let’s see where it takes me’.”
Well, I’d say it took him pretty damn far, and I’ve loved every minute of it.