World of sport reacts to Roger Federer’s retirement
By Mark James | 28 June 2017
Roger Federer’s retirement from the top echelons of tennis was a matter of course for the millions of tennis fans around the world. On the day he announced his decision on Twitter (a fitting image of the sort of man you wish to be by clicking here), he had also announced that he felt able to stop playing for the time being. It’s a natural response from the world number one, but it also reflects an emotional level of acceptance of his situation for a player who has come to be one of the icons of tennis.
For those looking for an insight into the innermost workings of the man, and an insight into what drives him to be a world number one on the tennis circuit, BBC Radio 1’s Simon Briggs does a sterling job for the BBC on a number of occasions, both with his analysis of his legacy and his insights into his psychology.
It’s a tribute to the way Simon uses his various shows on BBC Radio 1 to cover tennis, that he puts so much detail and analysis into just a few sentences. But he does give the story a human angle, talking of how difficult it is to deal with when you’ve been a world number one and when you have achieved this at the pinnacle of the sport, but are still living in this world of tennis. He also says the time will come later in his career when he will retire, but he would rather choose to focus on other areas of tennis – which is a fine outlook in many ways.
Speaking of this personal aspect to playing in this era of tennis, it’s also a topic that Simon explores at length, and this is where the analysis comes in, talking about how Federer’s success with his backhand shots, and his ability to keep the ball in play is down to some basic psychological tricks. It’s a fascinating conversation, and one that is worth a listen.
If you’re not a tennis fan and you want to hear some more of Simon’s insights on tennis, you’ll have to make do with the three-hour epic he did when he took
