Roger Federer’s Coach Severin Lüthi Pens an Emotional Open Letter to Him

Roger Federer, the tennis gem and apple of many tennis fans’ eyes, hung his racket this season. The 20 times Grand Slam champion said goodbye to his 24 years of a marvelous career at the fifth edition of the Laver Cup.

On the 24th of September, amidst the chants and a stadium full of teary eyes, Federer played his last match. While many flooded the social media platforms with thank-you notes immediately, others, such as coach Severin Lüthi, took some time to process their emotions regarding the entire thing.

From Lüthi to Roger Federer

The former tennis Swiss professional and Federer’s coach since 2007 finally gathered himself and dedicated a letter to the much deserving journey of theirs. At first, he expressed, “It has taken me a while to know what I wanted to say… It has been an emotional last few weeks but what a RIDE it has been.”

Thereafter, he took a trip down memory lane and recalled all that the coach-ace duo has achieved and done together. He wrote, “the Grand Slam wins, the Davis Cup victory in Lille, the Victory in Beijing at the Olympics, but also all of the special moments we have shared off the court. Our holidays, the weddings, the birthday parties, pranking other team members and seeing your amazing children grow up. I will treasure these moments forever.”

“It has been admirable to see how you have also been able to juggle so much at once. But most importantly, with a smile on your face. You will continue to be an inspiration to so many with the passion you had for the game of tennis,” the 46-year-old added. Federer enrolled for the Swiss Indoors Basel and the Laver Cup in the hopes of getting his form back for the coming season.

Though the knee injury owing to which since last year’s Wimbledon Championships he didn’t take part in any of the tournaments never healed to an extent in which he could level with other professionals on the court. Therefore, the former World no.1 had to give up.

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Federer decided to pay attention to his body’s demand for rest. The 20 times champion withdrew his name from the ATP  500 event of Basel, which itself is making a comeback this season after being called off for two years due to the pandemic.

Federer’s last match

The 41-year-old marked the end of his tennis career by playing a match under Team Europe’s banner. He teamed up with his biggest rival and best friend Rafael Nadal for a doubles clash with the Team World’s American duo.

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The two of the big three locked horns with Jack Sock and the US Open semifinalists Frances Tiafoe’s team in the hard court of O2 Arena. They secured the first set, but lost grip on the following ones and incurred a 6-4 6 (2)-7 9-11 defeat.