20-time Grand Slam singles champion Roger Federer will retire from top-level tennis after the Lever Cup in London later this month.
Swiss Federer, 41, has not played since Wimbledon 2021 after undergoing a third knee operation.
“My body’s message to me has been clear lately,” Federer said.
— Roger Federer (@rogerfederer) September 15, 2022
“I have played more than 1,500 matches in 24 years. Now I must know that it is time to end my competitive career.”
He added: “In the game of tennis, I love you and will never leave you.”
Federer has been battling a knee problem for the past three years that has limited him to just three of the 11 Grand Slams since the start of 2020.
He has not played a competitive match since losing to Hubert Herkaz in the quarterfinals at Wimbledon last summer.
He then announced that he needed more surgery on his knee and had previously undergone two operations in 2020.
Roger,
— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) September 15, 2022
Where do we begin?
It's been a privilege to witness your journey and see you become a champion in every sense of the word.
We will so miss the sight of you gracing our courts, but all we can say for now is thank you, for the memories and joy you have given to so many. pic.twitter.com/VDWylKvW86
Only Spain’s Rafael Nadal, with 22 majors, and Serbia’s Novak Djokovic, with 21, have more men’s Grand Slam singles titles than Federer.
Federer made his professional debut aged 16 in 1998 and won his first Grand Slam title at Wimbledon in 2003.
He ends his career with a record total of eight men’s singles victories at the All England Club.
Federer’s last Grand Slam victory came at the 2018 Australian Open when, at age 36, he became the second-oldest man to win a major singles title in the Open era.
After first becoming world number one in 2004, he spent 310 weeks as the top player on the ATP Tour during his career – a record until surpassed by Djokovic in February 2021.
