Saturday, June 06, 2015

Roger Federer talks tennis idols

What is it like to step on the court with your tennis idol? For 23-year-old Damir Dzumhur,Roger Federer’s third-round opponent on Friday in Paris, it was out of this world.

“I was warming up, and I was still not believing that I'm playing Roger Federer,” he said. “Really, it was a strange feeling, like I'm dreaming. But then suddenly I switched when I started to play.”

Federer, too, vividly remembers what it was like to compete against Pete Sampras in their fourth-round Wimbledon epic in 2001. The Swiss was just 19 years old.

“I never got a chance to play [Boris] Becker and [Stefan] Edberg, but Pete clearly was huge, plus it was on Centre Court at Wimbledon.” Federer said. “It was just already very exciting playing against the guys you knew from TV, doesn't matter who it is.

“You just wonder: Does your game actually match up with those kind of guys? Because it's so surreal that you don't think it does, and then you realize it's so easy to win games. I thought it was the most exciting time almost in my playing career, rubbing shoulders with those guys, seeing them prepare, joke around, being one of you, and all of a sudden, you become friends with them. I think it's very cool.”

Federer would topple Dzumhur 6-4, 6-3, 6-2 to advance to the Round of 16 at Roland Garros for an 11th straight year. As engaged as both players and fans were in their third-round battle, there were two spectators who may have been a bit distracted: Federer’s 5-year-old twin girls sat in the stands engrossed in a comic book and a smart phone.

“They are happy when I'm back from the matches,” Federer said with a laugh. “They are happy when I come back from practice because they like spending time with me rather than me being gone. I'm happy it's that way and not the other way, that they can't wait for me to go play tennis.

“Clearly they like looking at their books and all that stuff. I don't blame them. It's sweet that they are out with their friends, together as a family. Today they are old enough to not make any more noise and stuff, so it's nice to see them out there.”

Federer will no doubt fit in some family time as he mentally prepares for a challenging fourth-round match against the winner of Gael Monfils and Pablo Cuevas.

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