Federer, who last week announced his retirement from competitive tennis, thanked his wife Mirka for her continued support. “She could have stopped me a long, long time ago but she didn’t. She kept me going and allowed me to play, so it’s amazing – thank you.”
“In my vision, I was never able to talk, so I am doing way better. And everybody is here tonight from my family, so it is great. We have had so much fun over the last 13 years.”
Federer also acknowledged the crucial role his mother played in his career. “I find it always funny – we always blame my Mum for everything because, without her, I would not be here, of course. So, thanks to my parents, you have been amazing.”
Federer finished his competitive tennis career with 20 Grand Slam singles titles. His trophy cabinet includes 6 Australian Open titles, 1 French Open trophy, 8 Wimbledon trophies and 5 consecutive US Open titles.
In his ATP Tour career, Federer earned 1251 wins, which is the second-most after Jimmy Connors (1274). Federer also won 103 tour-level trophies, only behind Connors (109).
It is to be noted that Federer never retired from a match and, at the age of 36, became the oldest world number one in the history of the ATP rankings on February 19, 2018.