Federer undecided on participation in Laver Cup

The upcoming Laver Cup will mark the end of an era for Roger Federer but his exact participation in their team competition is still to be decided, according to his long-time trainer.

On Thursday Federer announced his retirement from tennis after playing for 24 years on the Tour.

The Swiss Maestro hasn’t played a match since his quarter-final loss at Wimbledon last year due to a right knee injury which required further surgery.

He also underwent two medical procedures on his knee in 2020. In a video posted on social media, he confirmed that he will end his career at the Laver Cup which will be staged at The O2 Arena in London.

However, it is still unclear as to how much the former world No.1 will play at the event which takes place over three days with Europe taking on the rest of the world. Federer’s Team8 management company is one of the co-founders of the Laver Cup.

Shedding some light on the situation, Federer’s trainer Pierre Paganini told the newspaper Blick that a decision is still to be made.

“He will probably decide that at the last moment. He’s trained to have as much information as possible about whether it’s a good idea or not,” he said.

Paganini, who is 64, has worked with the 20-time Grand Slam champion for 22 years. He says Federer began to find his training commitments harder leading up to his decision to announce his retirement.

“If you ask me for my assessment: I think it’s a smart decision (to retire),” Paganini commented.

“It’s not just about the knee. Roger has played a lot of matches in his career and put his body under extreme strain. He’s had to put in an incredible amount of effort in recent years to compete at a world-class level. Imagine how many training sessions a top athlete has done up to the age of 41! It’s a miracle to me how he’s done for the past five years.”

During his record-breaking career, Federer has set various milestones. He is the oldest player to have ever been No.1 on the ATP Tour and once held that position for a record 237 weeks in a row.

Federer is also the only ATP player to have won 10 or more Tour titles on grass, clay and hardcourt. He has played 1526 singles matches and never retired from any of them.

“He acted like there were no limits. But he always kept his limits in mind. I think he knew he was getting closer and closer to that limit,” said Paganini.

“The tennis and everything he did on the court looked like it was simple and easy and easy. That’s crazy, especially when you know how much effort was involved in training. Sometimes I came into training and stood there with my mouth open when he threw himself into it.” He added.

The Laver Cup will start on Friday. Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray will also be attending.