“It’s easier now” Jimmy Connors once demeaned Roger Federer’s longevity by adducing John McEnroe’s game style and dismissing the contemporary generation
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Roger Federer, Jimmy Connors, and John McEnroe
One of the most impressive parts of Roger Federer’s illustrious career is his longevity. The Swiss maestro himself has said that his longevity is the aspect of his game that he’s most proud of. His professional career lasted for over 2 decades during which he won over 100 career titles including 20 grand slam titles.
Back in 2011 when Federer turned 30, American legend Jimmy Connors shared his insights into Federer’s longevity. In an interview, he was asked how long can Federer stay near the top and if will he be the same at 38 or 39. Connors shockingly said that it is easier now to prolong careers because the variety of opponents is not like it was in the 70s and the 80s.
He said that he himself had to deal with players with extremely different playing styles on a daily basis- John McEnroe, Bjorn Borg, and Eddie Dibbs whereas nowadays, most of the players have a very similar playing style.
“Because the variety of opponents is not like it was, I would think that being able to play longer would be a little bit easier now. You don’t have to deal with playing McEnroe one way and then Lendl one way and then Borg another way and then Eddie Dibbs another way. Every match that you played, you had to take two or three different ways to play out to the court to play in case one didn’t work. The way the guys are playing now, their styles are mostly all the same,” Connors said.
Roger Federer retired from tennis at 41
Roger Federer retired from professional tennis at 41 last month at the Laver Cup. He played his last match, which was a doubles match, alongside Rafael Nadal in front of a packed O2 Arena in London. The event of Federer’s retirement will go down as one of the most emotional moments in tennis history.
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Lakshya Chopra
(2626 Articles Published)