Roger Federer Opens Up

SPEAKER_1 (0:01)

From One World Trade Center in Manhattan, this is The New Yorker Radio Hour, a co-production of The New Yorker and WNYC Studios.

David Remnick (0:09)

Welcome to The New Yorker Radio Hour. I'm David Remnick. Roger Federer, who's getting ready to play at the US. Open in New York, is, for my money, the greatest men's tennis player of all time. He's won 20 Grand Slam titles. He's spent 310 weeks ranked number one in the world. And just look at the guy. Even at 38, which is pretty old for professional tennis, he is a dominant figure. Part of his greatness resides above his shoulders. He has an unmatchable court intelligence and temperament, which is why it was a little shocking when Federer's match against Novak Djokovic at the final at Wimbledon last month ended with a stunning and very unusual mistake.

SPEAKER_3 (0:55)

Novak Djokovic for a fifth Wimbledon title.

David Remnick (1:00)

Now, I know this is not a pleasant moment or a pleasant memory for you, but the Wimbledon final in July, you've won Wimbledon eight times. That's more than any other men's player. This year, you played in the final against Novak Djokovic, and it was an amazing match and arguably you outplayed him. It was the longest final in Wimbledon history, but it ended in a pretty shocking way. You had match point in the fifth set and it's got to be said, you miss hit the ball and just shanked it into the stands and Djokovic goes on to win. Tell me about that moment, the ball that hits your racket and you watch it fly off into the stands and you seem so contained, but how do you describe the sense of disappointment or whatever it was after so many hours and so much effort and so much beautiful play?

Roger Federer (1:47)

That's tough. It's tough, you know, just because, like you said, I thought it was a great match, you know, I played really good, had all my chances, won more points than he did, and then to end up losing the way I did, really made me more angry than anything, you know, because I really felt like I could have, should have done it. But, you know, that's how it goes sometimes, you know, I'm very quick to analyze a match like this. I got over the finals very, very easily, very quickly, to be honest, because it's just part of it.

David Remnick (2:18)

So, you weren't miserable to be around for the next few days after. You didn't have to avoid your kids and they didn't have to avoid you. You were okay.

Roger Federer (2:27)

Yeah, I was, I actually slept in a camper van Monday night. So, I lost Sunday. We went back all as a family on Monday. We went on a camping trip. So, there was no avoiding the family. Of course, I woke up Tuesday morning, it is now incredibly just tired and drained still from the match and just from having a bad night's sleep in the caravan because I had never slept in a caravan before, but it was so much fun. We had the best time and I'm so happy we did it. But we did say that next time if we do it, it may be better not to do it after a five hour battle with Novak Djokovic in the Wimbledon Finals.

David Remnick (3:03)

When you're playing in a big match, are you having fun or is that too childish a word to bring to what the activity is on a big stage?

Roger Federer (3:14)

I think it is fun, but I see what you're trying to say. And I also do sense that sometimes because it's so important and to some extent so serious, it's maybe not as much fun as you think it is. But the challenge is fun. You know, having those butterflies before walking out on court is interesting. I don't say it's fun because that's maybe something I will not miss, but yet I will miss it because it's an exhilarating feeling. And it's something you don't get when you're playing video games or I don't know what.

It comes about because the pressure is so high playing in front of a live audience. And of course, sometimes you play less good, but all I want to do then is maybe if things are really not going well, because that just sometimes happens. Doesn't happen nearly as enough as I thought it would when I would be at this age. But for me, it's more about at least make my opponent beat me, make him earn it. And then at least I can walk out and say like, okay, the other guy was better today, it wasn't maybe my day, whatever the reasons were. But yeah, fun is always there. But it comes and goes, I guess, a little bit at that level.