Team World Brought All The Right Stuff Together To Win Their First Laver Cup Title

Team World lifts the Laver Cup in London

Team World entered the final day of Laver Cup 2022 in London trailing four-time champion Team Europe 8-4 and needing to win three of four matches. While it wasn’t an impossible task, it would take everyone on John McEnroe’s Team World squad coming together and playing inspired and focused tennis on Sunday.

With each win worth three points, match by match, Team World turned this year’s Laver Cup upside down and won three straight matches – all with exciting outcomes – to win the Laver Cup title for the first time.

It was quite a weekend to remember in London, which drew more than 96,000 tennis enthusiasts to the O2 Arena, first to bid farewell to Roger Federer, then to see Novak Djokovic’s return to the ATP Tour after winning his seventh Wimbledon title, and, finally, to see Team World’s remarkable final-day comeback, in which Canada’s Felix Auger-Aliassime and Frances Tiafoe of the United States shouldered the load and carried the team on their shoulders to triumph.

Auger-Aliassime gave Team World the lead on the final day thanks to a pair of wins, first by partnering with Jack Sock to edge Matteo Berrettini and Andy Murray, 2-6, 6-3, 10-8, then by defeating Djokovic, 6-3, 7-6 (3). Next, Tiafoe, fought off four match points during a second-set tie-break to beat Stefanos Tsitsipas, 1-6, 7-6 (11), 10-8, which clinched the 13-8 victory for Team World. 

When one considers what transpired, it’s pretty wild that a team with zero Grand Slam singles titles beat a team with 66 that featured Federer (20), Rafael Nadal (22), Djokovic (21) and Andy Murray (3). But that’s exactly what happened. 

In praising his team during the trophy ceremony, Team World captain McEnroe said: “They brought the energy, belief and intensity.”

Later, McEnroe admitted: “It beats losing, that’s for sure. The difference was that we kept battling. There was a great team spirit. We knew we had a shot at it, but it was an uphill battle.”

While McEnroe likely would have been second-guessed for playing Auger-Aliassime back-to-back in Sunday’s first two matches – especially if the young, 21-year-old Canadian faltered against the veteran Djokovic, 35 – in hindsight it was a brilliant and tactical decision.

“This is something that’s discussed among all of us,” he said. “These guys know the ins and outs of what’s going to work best. Felix was ready for it, he had debuted last year, and now he was ready to step up to the big time.”

Auger-Aliassime said he enjoys the challenge that comes from playing in team events, “feeling I can bring something not only to myself but to the team. I feel like it pushes me also to stay positive, to dig deep, that feeling that I’m not only playing for myself, I’m trying to bring something to the team, bring a point to the team.”

Tiafoe added: “All week leading up I kept saying this was our year. The guys showed up. Felix beat Novak, Jack and Felix also played unbelievable doubles. We did it all together, it wasn’t just me.”

Coming off a semifinal run at the US Open, which boosted his ranking to a career-best World No. 19, Tiafoe has been playing some of the best tennis of his career. He said he would rank his Laver Cup-clinching victory over Tsitsipas among his best.

“To do it here in Laver Cup, to win for the first time, given how bad Mac wanted it, how bad everybody else wanted it, seeing what Felix and Jack did – I thought it was just time. It was time to get it done,” Tiafoe said during his team’s final press conference. 

Looking back, as New York Times tennis correspondent Christopher Clarey suggested in a tweet Sunday evening, “[the] Laver Cup has proven that it is value added for tennis.

“Its future is up to the players. If the best ones commit to it consistently and continue to care about the outcome it will thrive.”

A postscript

Roger Federer said this year’s Laver Cup competition would remain special to him – especially the sendoff he received Friday evening after playing in the final match of his pro career.

“Being on court on Friday and having such a huge moment in my career, being surrounded by my biggest rivals like Novak and Andy and Rafa was truly unique, and I can never thank them enough for being there and staying there and going through it with me,” he said.

“I hope that their farewell will also be unique and special, that it works for them, because it was beautiful for me.”

Cover photo: Courtesy Getty Images for Laver Cup.

Federer Brought Joy to a Golden Era of Tennis

Roger Federer 

Within minutes after Roger Federer announced his retirement from tennis on Thursday – the Laver Cup next week in London will be his final ATP event – the tributes began to pour in on social media. There were many and they were all sincere and genuine. They came from players such as Rafael Nadal, Petra Kvitova, Coco Gauff and Carlos Alcaraz as well as from Wimbledon, where he enjoyed many of his greatest moments as a professional tennis player.

Of all the gifts that tennis has given Federer, the greatest without a doubt, he wrote, has been the people he’s met along the way. “My friends, my competitors, and most of all the fans who give the sport its life.”

It is said that timing is everything and Federer, 41, has always shown impeccable timing throughout his storied and artistic career that began as a ball kid growing up in Basel, Switzerland. Federer’s announcement came just five weeks after Serena Williams announced her “evolution” away from from the sport. Who could have imagine that this day would arrive for Federer, too?

In a letter written to his fans from home in Switzerland and posted Thursday on his social media channels, Federer wrote: “As many of you know, the past three years have presented me with challenges in the form of injuries and surgeries. I’ve worked hard to return to full competitive form. But I also know my body’s capacities and limits, and its message to me lately has been clear. I am 41 years old. I have played more than 1500 matches over 24 years. Tennis has treated me more generously than I ever would have dreamt, and now I must recognize when it is time to end my competitive career.

“The Laver Cup next week in London will be my final ATP event. I will play more tennis in the future, of course, but just not in Grand Slams or on the tour.”

Federer has not competed since Wimbledon in July 2021. Since then, he’s undergone multiple surgeries to his left knee and tried to rehabilitate it in order to regain elite form and continue playing competitively. 

Federer expressed that it was a bittersweet decision because “I will miss everything the tour has given me. But at the same time, there is so much to celebrate. I consider myself one of the most fortunate people on Earth. I was given a special talent to play tennis, and I did it at a level that I never imagined, for much longer than I ever thought possible.”

While Federer thanked his wife, Mirka, and his four children; his parents and sister, plus his coaches, business partners and sponsors – as well as the hard-working teams and tournaments on the ATP Tour – he also made a point to thank his competitors on the court.

“I was lucky enough to play so many epic matches that I will never forget. We battled fairly, with passion and intensity, and I always tried my best to respect the history of the game. I feel extremely grateful. We pushed each other, and together we took tennis to new levels.”

Above all else, Federer gave praise to his “unbelievable” fans. “You will never know how much strength and belief you have given me. The inspiring feeling of walking into full stadiums and arenas has been one of the huge thrills in my life. Without you, those successes would have felt lonely, rather than filled with joy and energy.”

Federer’s career began at age 16 in July 1998 in Gstaad, Switzerland, with a 6-4, 6-4 loss to Lucas Arnold Ker of Argentina and ended at age 39 – almost 40 – with a 6-3, 7-6 (4), 6-0 loss to Hubert Hurkacz of Poland in July 2021 at Wimbledon.

Indeed, the last 24 years have been an incredible adventure, thanks to Federer and Williams – global citizens of sport – especially during the Grand Slam fortnights. Federer has played in more than 40 countries and he’s laughed and cried, felt joy and pain – and at his best, his tennis has been incredibly alive and sublime. His eight Wimbledon titles represent some of his greatest moments among the 20 major titles and 103 tour-level crowns he’s won. He surpassed Pete Sampras with a then-leading 15 major titles, then was passed by two of his contemporaries, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic. His battles against his Big Four mates – Nadal and Djokovic, and Andy Murray – were all memorable.

If you are interested in learning more about Federer, two books worth a very good read are: The Master: The Long Run and Beautiful Game of Roger Federer by New York Times tennis correspondent Christopher Clarey, about Federer and this golden age in men’s tennis, published in 2021; and Strokes of Genius: Federer, Nadal, and the Greatest Match Ever Played, by Sports Illustrated tennis writer and Tennis Channel insider L. Jon Wertheim, about the epic Federer-Nadal 2008 Wimbledon final.

On a personal note, Federer has been one of just a very small number of athletes, whom I would drop whatever I doing to watch perform on TV – especially during the Grand Slams. There was always a sense of wonder in watching him play on Centre Court at Wimbledon as well as on Arthur Ashe Stadium at the US Open. He was greatness personified – he showed class and respected the history of the game – and he dressed the part, too. It all added up.

It’s never easy when one of the greats of sports steps down. Federer may be retiring from the competitive arena, but he never retired from a match. Fortunately, Federer leaves the sport of tennis better than when he arrived – and it will be exciting to see if the next generation of men’s players that includes Carlos Alcaraz, Jannik Sinner and Frances Tiafoe are ready to step up and carry on the aesthetics and athleticism that Federer brought to the sport. Hopefully, there will be others who will combine elegance and grace, and a beautiful game, too.

In the meantime, here’s giving thanks to Federer, who definitely made tennis better on and off the court. As he exits the stage, he will be missed. Mind you, I think it will be exciting to see Roger continue to bring joy to the world in other ways. No doubt, he will be just as successful.

“So, I want to thank you all from the bottom of my heart, to everyone around the world who has helped make the dreams of a young Swiss ball kid come true,” Federer concluded in his message.

“Finally, to the game of tennis, I love you and will never leave you.”

Photo: Courtesy of Roger Federer Instagram.