Roger Federer Announces Retirement from Tennis

Roger Federer, the 20-time major winner whose ruthless artistry defined an era of tennis, announced his retirement on Thursday. From a report: "I am 41 years old, I've played more than 1,500 matches over 24 years, and tennis has treated me more generously than I ever would have dreamt," Federer said in a video on social media, "and now I must recognize when it is time to end my competitive career." For so much of that career, Federer seemed as if he would go down as the all-time men's leader for Grand Slam titles. He rounded past his idol Pete Sampras with his 15th major championship in 2009 and topped the list until 2022. But by then, his career had become inextricably linked to the other members of tennis's Big Three, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic. As Federer struggled with injuries in recent years, Nadal overtook his tally at this year's Australian Open and now sits in first place with 22 major titles, having also won Roland-Garros this year. Djokovic is also ahead of Federer with 21, following his win this year at Wimbledon. Federer, who will say goodbye at the Laver Cup exhibition in London next week, underwent knee surgery last year in the faint hope of returning to the pro circuit for a last hurrah. But as the recovery dragged and tennis kept speeding up, the Swiss master shotmaker realized it was time to call it a day. The man who once looked untouchable now retires in third place on the list of men's major championships. His dizzying final scorecard reads: eight Wimbledon championships, six Australian Opens, five U.S. Opens, and one Roland-Garros. He picked up 103 titles on tour, one Olympic doubles gold medal for Switzerland, and at one point spent a record 237 straight weeks as the No. 1 ranked player in the world. It earned him $130,594,339 in prize money alone, according to the ATP Tour.

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