If Roger Federer was a kid while Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic were playing tennis, who would the Swiss have cheered for? In a recent press conference, the Swiss player said: ‘For sure Rafa. He is exciting, energetic, the ideal guy for young guys.

I appreciate both of them a lot, they play an unbelievably physical tennis, they are younger than me but I feel better physically than how I was doing at 20 years. I keep what I have. I would definitely like to have those powerful serves, you launch the ball and the point is ended, like Karlovic or Isner, or maybe Edberg’s volley because I always loved volleying players.’ Meanwhile, the Rolex Shanghai Masters Tournament Director Michael Luevano confirmed Federer’s commitment to Shanghai: ‘As long as he is playing, he is going to play in Shanghai.

He will put it in his calendar. We have a friendship, he has his co-partnerships, Uniqlo is one of the largest commercial partners in Asia and I would not be surprised to see him many times in Japan in the future. He was in Tokyo prior to Shanghai.

I know he loves Japan, Asia and Shanghai obviously. We are blessed to have the world’s greatest tennis player.

The tournament had to be cancelled completely last year, meaning the current edition is the first since 2019, when Fabio Fognini was a surprise winner.
That has come with a trade-off, though, with no fans able to attend due to the ongoing coronavirus crisis

“Sad not to see the crowds here this year after practice,” Rafael Nadal, the 11-time champion, posted on his Instagram story.

Interestingly, that was at-odds with Novak Djokovic’s observations, with the world number one saying the lack of fans has made for particularly good practice conditions for players.

“It is better for training because there are no fans, there are only people from sponsoring companies,” the world number one told the Serbian media.

“Under normal circumstances, it is difficult to provide courts for all players and then practice for an hour here, an hour there at the very beginning of the tournament when there are many players.

“Now I notice that most players train one on one without the need to share the court. That may be a positive thing.

“You play matches where you usually train, meet people and spend time outside.

“Now we have time to look at the trainings of other players, for which we are grateful because we are in safe conditions due to all restrictions and it’s nice to catch some fresh air.”

Neil Powell, the coach of Blitzboks — the South African national rugby sevens team — was impressed by the mix of outstanding shots thrown on the court by Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal during the exhibition that took place on Cape Town Stadium, South Africa, about a week ago.

Neil attended the match with his family and he had a great time seeing the two tennis titans. In an interview for Rugby Rocks, Powell expressed his opinion on the Cape Town exhibition. “It was incredible […] Everybody was filled with excitement for one of the biggest sporting events to ever take place in Africa.

We (Neil and his family) were fortunate enough to get some amazing seats, right by the halfway line and next to the tunnel where the players walk out”. the coach said. Blitzboks’ coach led the team to a first-place finish in the 2016-17 World Rugby Sevens Series, so he knows what talent looks like and how to make it shine.

Yet, he was delighted by the virtuosity of Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal. “I don’t think people watching on TV can actually see how quickly they hit that ball. The ball literally misses the net by millimetres, and it is incredible to see how much spin they can get.

I don’t think they played as competitively as they usually would at Wimbledon, for instance, but their competitive side was definitely still there. That level of tennis was absolutely astounding to see in person”. Powell said.