Roger Federer revelation: ‘This is how I told Rafa Nadal about retirement’

One of the first to know about the withdrawal was the historic rival.

Roger Federer bidding farewell to tennis was one of the biggest news stories of 2022 for the entire international sports landscape. And with the decision now largely in the bag, the Swiss revealed that among the first to be informed of the news outside of his relatives was Rafa Nadal.

The Swiss star spoke about this during an appearance on Trevor Noah’s ‘Daily Show’ explaining when and how he informed Nadal of his impending retirement. “The US Open was over, and I decided to call him,” Federer recounted. “Talking to him was very emotional, because he was among the first to know my decision and that he was not a member of my family or my team.

So Federer went into the details of that phone call, “I told him ‘Hi Rafa, before you make other commitments I want to ask you if you want to come to the Laver Cup. So you can play the last doubles match of my career with me.’ He was speechless, and then he simply replied that he would come.”

“On the ATP circuit I had a great time. Now I feel worried, because I see that both tennis and other sports are becoming more and more professional and leaving less and less room for fun,” Federer added.