Barbara Schett says she would 'love' for Roger Federer to play Wimbledon again before retiring
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Updated 24/08/2022 at 09:30 GMT
Eurosport's Barbara Schett would "love" to see Roger Federer play at Wimbledon again before retiring - but admits "things are not getting any easier" at his age, with the Swiss having recently turned 41. Federer is preparing for a comeback from his knee injury at September's Laver Cup in London. Stream the 2022 Laver Cup exclusively live on discovery+ and eurosport.co.uk.
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Barbara Schett fears that Roger Federer may announce his retirement without fans getting the chance to watch him on a farewell tour.
After the impending retirement of fellow great Serena Williams - whose last tournament is expected to be the US Open - Federer appears to be the next on most people's tennis retirement watchlist, even if the Swiss is on the comeback trail following a long-term knee problem, with his return expected to be at September's Laver Cup in London.
Williams announced her decision ahead of time, giving supporters the chance to watch her play in her final events, but Schett thinks Federer may go for a different approach when he opts to bring the curtain down on his own illustrious career that has contained 20 major titles.
Eurosport's Schett said: "Everybody can't wait to see him [Federer] back.
"And the question is at the Laver Cup, is he going to play singles? Or is it just going to play doubles? One thing is for sure, he's going to play something so we'll see him in action.
"Don't forget, he's not the youngest any more, he's been out for a long time. He played his last match last year in Wimbledon, and things are not getting easier at that age when you are out for that long.
"When you play a professional match out there, you can practice as much as you want, but nothing compares to playing on high-level match that shakes your body around with the adrenaline. So, we'll see what's going to happen.
"I am always worried with Roger that one day he is just going to say 'OK, that's it, I call it quits.'
Schett added: "I don't think he's going to do a Serena, where he's going to say, 'OK, I'm going to play this and that tournament'.
"I would love to see him play in Wimbledon and then go and retire, but it's up to him. It's a very personal decision.
"I think he just wants to give his knee a bit of a test, but we can't fool ourselves that he's 40 years of age and his career is coming to an end – it’s impossible to play much longer."
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Stream the 2022 Laver Cup exclusively live on discovery+ and eurosport.co.uk
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