WASHINGTON, February 17, 2018 (by Michael Dickens)
Soon after Roger Federer reclaimed the No. 1 world ranking for the first time since November 2012 and surpassed Andre Agassi to become the oldest male tennis player to achieve World No. 1, the accolades began pouring in for the Swiss maestro from several Hall of Fame greats – including Agassi – as well as his longtime friend Dame Anna Wintour, editor-in-chief of Vogue.
By reaching the semifinals at the ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament in Rotterdam, The Netherlands, with his 4-6, 6-1, 6-1 victory over Robin Haase on Friday night, it guaranteed Federer would earn at least 180 ATP rankings points to push ahead of current No. 1 Rafael Nadal by 25 points when the new Emirates ATP Rankings are released Monday.
36 years 195 days…@RogerFederer continues to raise the bar in our sport. Congratulations on yet another remarkable achievement!!
— Andre Agassi (@AndreAgassi) 16. Februar 2018
@rogerfederer continues writing history!!! #goat @ATPWorldTour
— Boris Becker (@TheBorisBecker) 16. Februar 2018
Congratulations @rogerfederer – Back where you belong my friend.
— Rod Laver (@rodlaver) 17. Februar 2018
Age is nothing but a number. Congratulations, @rogerfederer! #championstatus https://t.co/S0lKPyDDaV
— Billie Jean King (@BillieJeanKing) 16. Februar 2018
36 years 195 days…@RogerFederer continues to raise the bar in our sport. Congratulations on yet another remarkable achievement!!
— Andre Agassi (@AndreAgassi) 16. Februar 2018
Wintour, a longtime regular in Federer’s box at Wimbledon and the U.S. Open, told vogue.com: “Roger is absolutely terrific with numbers: 20 Grand Slam victories, eight Wimbledon wins, five consecutive U.S. Open titles – and he’s the father to not one but two sets of twins. When you take into account that kind of winning streak, who else could become the world’s oldest number one player at the age of 36 than Roger?”
It’s been a long road, and sometimes windy, but feels surreal to be back at the top. I’m just happy to be healthy and playing tennis every day 🙌🏼👊🏼
— Roger Federer (@rogerfederer) 17. Februar 2018
About the author
Michael Dickens is a Washington, D.C.-area freelance journalist who writes and blogs about tennis.
