Tennis legend Roger Federer announced his retirement from the sport as the upcoming Laver Cup will be his final ATP event. The 41-year-old shared a long note on social media expressing his feelings and said that the injuries and surgeries have been part and parcel of his life in the past three years. Needless to say, this has left his fans and admirers heartbroken. Several Bollywood stars took to social media to express their sadness over his announcement.
Kareena Kapoor Khan shared the announcement on her Instagram story section and called him a legend.
Anushka Sharma shared Federer’s audio message that he had uploaded on social media and wrote, ‘Genius’ accompanied with a breaking heart emoji.
Several other celebrities including Pooja Hegde, Dia Mirza, Ayushmann Khurrana, and filmmaker Hansal Mehta showed their love and respect for the legend. Take a look at their reactions:
Mehta wrote, “Tennis will never be the same again. Thank you for your grace, elegance, brilliance and sportsmanship – both on and off the court. Thank you for the tennis Master Federer. You will always be the greatest. Beyond all records and numbers. #rogerfederer”
<blockquote class=”twitter-tweet”><p lang=”en” dir=”ltr”>Tennis will never be the same again. Thank you for your grace, elegance, brilliance and sportsmanship – both on and off the court. Thank you for the tennis Master Federer. You will always be the greatest. Beyond all records and numbers. <a href=”https://twitter.com/hashtag/rogerfederer?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>#rogerfederer</a> <a href=”https://t.co/utKna2E6cT”>https://t.co/utKna2E6cT</a></p>— Hansal Mehta (@mehtahansal) <a href=”https://twitter.com/mehtahansal/status/1570411626704285696?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>September 15, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src=”https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js” charset=”utf-8″></script>
“As many of you know, the past three years have presented me with challenges in the form of injuries and surgeries. I’ve worked hard to return to full competitive form. But I also know my body’s capacities and limits, and its message to me lately has been clear. I am 41 years old. I have played more than 1500 matches over 24 years. Tennis has treated me more generously than I ever would have dreamt, and now I must recognize when it is time to end my competitive career,” Roger Federer said in his statement.
The legendary Tennis star admitted that he will continue playing the sport but not at a competitive level.
“The Laver Cup next week in London will be my final ATP event. I will play more tennis in the future, of course, but just not in Grand Slams or on the tour,” he said in the statement.
