Roger Federer, the former World No. 1 and 103-time tour-level champion, made a brief appearance at the Rolex Shanghai Masters on October 13 to receive a prestigious award and bring his usual smile and energy to the court.
Along with Federer, WTA star Li Na and China’s top-ranked player in the Pepperstone ATP rankings, Zhang Zhizhen, attended the star-studded celebration, giving Shanghai fans a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to see the iconic trio on stage.
The Tennis Letter: “Li Na joins Federer on court in Shanghai. Roger made so much history for the sport & represented it with so much class. Li Na forever changed the face of Chinese tennis & what it means to be a Chinese tennis player. Great to see them together 🥹”
Li Na joins Federer on court in Shanghai.
Roger made so much history for the sport & represented it with so much class.
Li Na forever changed the face of Chinese tennis & what it means to be a Chinese tennis player.
Great to see them together 🥹
— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) October 13, 2023
The Tennis Letter: “Zhizhen Zhang attended Roger Federer’s ceremony in Shanghai. He received a huge ovation from the crowd. He’s already made history for Chinese tennis.”
Zhizhen Zhang attended Roger Federer’s ceremony in Shanghai.
He received a huge ovation from the crowd.
He’s already made history for Chinese tennis.
Nice to see him with one of the greatest sportsmen of all time. ❤️ pic.twitter.com/1CyJovOZLj
— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) October 13, 2023
A fan of Federer
Zhizhen also took this opportunity to say that he’s been a fan of the Swiss tennis legend all those years, saying, “I’ve always been your fan. Clapping for you every match you play. It’s a great honor to meet you in person.”
He also asked Federer if he ever had the urge to come back and play the sports, to which he gladly responded, “I’m extremely happily retired. 😂There’s no coming back.”
At one point in the ceremony, Federer gave the spectators a huge fan service when he started hitting tennis balls into the crowd.
Roger Federer hitting tennis balls into the crowd in Shanghai.
There’s a sight for sore eyes.
I’m sure he remembers the feeling of doing this after winning all those matches. 🥹
— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) October 13, 2023
Along with the spectators, Federer also took a seat in the stands to observe Rublev’s match. At one point, the camera zoomed in on Federer, who had been concentrating on the match, and he broke into a smile as he realized that the camera had focused on him.
The Tennis Letter: “Roger Federer is in the house to watch Andrey Rublev in Shanghai. Andrey spotted him in the crowd. Lots of smiles going around. 🥰”
Roger Federer is in the house to watch Andrey Rublev in Shanghai.
Andrey spotted him in the crowd.
Lots of smiles going around. 🥰
— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) October 13, 2023
When questioned by the media about whether the former champion’s presence distracted him, Rublev replied:
“No he didn’t distract me at all. But all the people stopped focusing on the match because they were only focusing on Roger. So they weren’t watching any more tennis, they were watching only Roger.” 😂
The photo above is from a YouTube screengrab