Credit: Twitter
It was indeed a stunning moment, as the men's record eight-time champion Roger Federer returned once again to the esteemed centre court of the prestigious Wimbledon on Tuesday. The standing ovation led by the Princess Of Wales, Kate Middleton lasted for more than three minutes in the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club.
On Tuesday, eight-time winner Roger Federer was honoured at a special ceremony in Wimbledon, the venue where he first began to emerge as one of the greatest tennis players ever. In 2003, Federer won his maiden Grand Slam championship on this court. And on Tuesday, the 41-year-old received a big entry when he entered the location with his wife Mirka.
After the festivities, Wimbledon's official account posted a video of the legendary player. The video captures the audible loudness of the applause that included Kate Middleton, Roger's wife Mirka Federer, and a huge crowd. The video was captioned, "A legend returns. The Centre Court crowd rises for eight-time #Wimbledon champion @RogerFederer"
Watch the video here:
The same Wimbledon court saw several illustrious moments in the retired player’s long career, including seven consecutive final appearances from 2003 to 2007. And he dominated each of the initial five of them before falling to Rafael Nadal in the sixth final in what has been hailed as one of the greatest tennis matches ever fought. It took him till 2017 to win his final Wimbledon championship, which was also his eighth Wimbledon championship and 19th Grand Slam championship overall.
In 2019, Federer qualified for the championship match but fell to Novak Djokovic. Additionally, he was only able to advance to the quarterfinals in his final Wimbledon campaign in 2021.
At the Laver Cup in September 2022, when he played his final match opposite longtime rival, Rafael Nadal, he made his retirement announcement. Except for the Halle Open last month, where his accomplishments were celebrated, he hasn't played since announcing his retirement in September of last year.
