The Shanghai Rolex Masters tournament has been a sensational event with some blockbuster matches and two dream semifinals. But the entire event might have been overshadowed by the surreal appearance of Roger Federer.
The 20-time Grand Slam champion has graced the tournament with his presence for most of this week, playing table tennis, hanging out with players, watching matches and absorbing the worship from the Chinese tennis fans.
Today Federer, without any effort, managed to cause a humorous incident during the Sinner vs Tomas Machac semifinal. During the duel, before Sinner was about to serve, and during the moment of silence, a fan shouted, “We love you Roger!” Sinner completely ignored the disruption, which everyone in the stadium heard. The Italian world no. 1 robotically continued with his pre-serve routine of wiping his face with his wristband. But Machac, showed he has the quick wit and spontaneous humor the mechanical Sinner lacks, at least in public, during the heat of a court battle.
Just about two seconds after hearing “We love you Roger!”, Machac suddenly looked up, waved his arms and replied, “What about me!?!?” Everyone laughed or smiled, even Sinner, and even Federer himself, as the TV camera showed the Swiss icon from his front row perch, wearing dark sunglasses. Federer’s surprised reaction showed a slight hint of embarrassment that he was the guilty accomplice of causing the commotion.
The impromptu interaction seemed to emphasize a dilemma the ATP currently faces, which is trying to evolve and grow beyond the Federer Nadal Era. When Pete Sampras and Andre Agassi departed tennis, they stayed out of the spotlight for many years and let the next generation develop. Federer isn’t doing it that way, he’s making frequent appearances on the ATP World Tour and Grand Slams.
Federer’s presence in Shanghai surely earned him a hefty appearance fee and satisfied Shanghai fans with added bonus value for the price of their tickets. But it’s a fair question to ask if his nostalgic presence takes the spotlight and attention away from the current players who are striving replace Federer and take tennis to new heights and levels of popularity, just like Roger, Rafa and Djokovic did after Pete and Andre.
And like Tomas Machac, who is playing the best tennis of his career right now, while Federer sits and watches quietly and respectfully like any other fan.
At the next ATP tournament on a stadium court, if any fans yells out “We love you Tomas!” I will send that person a copy of my book “Vitas Gerulaitis: Portrait of a Champion.”
ATP · Jannik Sinner · Roger Federer · Shanghai Rolex Masters · Tomas Machac
Scoop Malinowski · October 12, 2024 at 1:02 pm
By the way, Sinner beat Machac 64 75 and Djokovic beat Fritz 64 76 to set up a dream final.
Steve · October 13, 2024 at 7:17 pm
I saw Fed sitting with Alcaraz and his coach during the Sinner/Djokovic match. One wonders? Who is he rooting for????
Scoop Malinowski · October 13, 2024 at 7:57 pm
Steve, good question, I once did a feature one year at US Open asking players in press conferences if they were out of the tournament who would you like to see win, as a tennis fan? Most of them didn’t care about other players and didn’t give interesting answers. It showed how self centered most players are, and need to be.