Tributes are pouring in for Roger Federer ever since he announced his retirement from tennis. Now 14-time Grand Slam champion Pete Sampras has penned a note for the Swiss maestro. It is worth noting that Roger Federer had ended Sampras’ four-year winning streak at Wimbledon on his first Centre Court appearance in 2001. In an emotional video posted on Twitter by ATP Tour, Sampras marvelled at Roger Federer’s rise to greatness. The seven-time Wimbledon champion recalled the only time he took on Federer in a tour-level match.
From one legend of the game to another @rogerfederer | #RForever pic.twitter.com/j36ugRxF2x— ATP Tour (@atptour) September 22, 2022
In the video, Sampras stated that he had recognized Federer’s genius from the vantage point of being at the other side of the net.
“Not really sure where to begin, so I’ll just start from the very beginning. When I first played you, you were 19 years old, an up-and-coming player and people were talking about you. And we had a great battle on the Centre Court of Wimbledon. And you took me down in a tough five-setter. I just remember walking off the court, feeling like I met my match," Sampras said in a video directed straight to Federer.
Sampras went on to hail Federer as a special player and added, “Little did I know, 20 years later, that you would have 20 majors, be number one for years, dominate our sport – basically do it all. You’re going to be missed in our game."
Federer thanked Sampras on Twitter for his kind words and said that his video meant the world for him.
Miss you Pistol. Your video means the to me. Thank you. https://t.co/Oy55Hd7La2— Roger Federer (@rogerfederer) September 22, 2022
Federer made his big breakthrough at Wimbledon in 2001 by defeating Sampras 7-6 5-7 6-4 6-7 7-5.
Many Federer fans regard that match as a turning point in the career of the beloved Swiss.
In a career spanning more than two decades, Federer cultivated a huge fan base with his effortless style of play. The 20-time Grand Slam champion had the game to prosper on every surface. For this reason many pundits regard Federer as the greatest player of all time. The Laver Cup 2022 will be Federer’s swansong from tennis.
In his last tour-level match, Federer will team up with Rafael Nadal for Team Europe against the Team World doubles pairing of Frances Tiafoe and Jack Sock on September 23.
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