Tennis news - Roger Federer 'can make it to 40 and perhaps beyond' - Rod Laver

Federer said earlier this week that he had decided he would at least play Wimbledon next year and that a decision about the Olympics in Tokyo which follow it would be taken "in the next few weeks".

It is not the first time the Swiss great has spoken about hanging up his racket and while most have presumed 2020 would be his last full season, he has never put a date on the end of his career.

Federer, 38, will play alongside his great rival Rafael Nadal at the Laver Cup this weekend and the man whose name adorns the trophy believes the end is further away than we think.

“He feels he can play on for a few years,” Laver said.

“In fact, one time, two or three years ago he said he thought he could play until he’s 40.

“At the moment he’s 38. And playing as well as pretty much – you saw the Wimbledon final, where they played for four-and-a-half hours against Djokovic, and he had match points.

“I feel like he can make them till he’s 40. He may go beyond that.”

Since taking time off in 2016 to recover from knee and back injuries, Federer has played a slimmed-down schedule and initially stopped taking part in the clay-court season altogether.

However, he returned to the red dirt this summer and reached the semi-finals of the French Open - only to be beaten in straight sets by Roland Garros king Nadal.

The two, who between them have 39 Grand Slam titles, will team up for Bjorn Borg's Team Europe in Geneva this weekend and Federer has already been admitted that the Laver Cup has taught him so much about the likes of Nadal and Novak Djokovic, who played last year but is not in Switzerland for this year's edition.

"You spend a week with Rafa and you look at his intensity," Federer said.

"How can he find a balance? Because otherwise you get crazy.

"When his training session ends, he is relaxed.

"I was surprised by how he always looks for chances.

"He returns from behind and forward, with slice and top spin.

"Also Djokovic, he is relaxed. We are similar. In order to have success you have to be relaxed.

"We play so many matches - from 50 to 100. It's not like boxing where you have one or two matches a year. Five minutes before the match, you have to relax.

"What I was surprised the most about Djokovic is his clarity when he wants to win a match. He is like, 'this is how I play, so I will have success'.

"Also his process: how and when to eat. Everything needs to be right. I respect it so much."