In Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz's second classic in as many months, the legend, rather than the phenom, had the final word

The 38-year-old comes into Cincinnati after enjoying a summer vacation in Switzerland with his family. The Swiss opens his tournament against Juan Ignacio Londero Tuesday evening.

Published Aug 12, 2019

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Roger Federer came so close to lifting his 21st major singles title last month at Wimbledon, but as he revealed, didn’t have much time to dwell on the crushing defeat. After Novak Djokovic saved two championship points before eventually prevailing in the first men’s match decided by a final set tiebreaker, Federer spoke in Cincinnati about his rapid transition from playing in the Wimbledon final to gearing up for a family vacation—by caravan.

“I slept in a caravan the day after my Wimbledon final. It was a tough first few steps down the ladder from the bed. And it was a bad night’s sleep. But the kids wanted to do it so, so badly so we went,” Federer told Prakash Amritraj.

“I was half broken from Wimbledon and everything. We enjoyed being home in Switzerland. The weather was so nice like it is here right now at the moment. We went to do hikes and sort of walked around and barbecued, so we had the best time.”

Federer also touched on rejoining the ATP Player Council with Rafael Nadal, adding, “I called Rafa up and thought, ‘what do you think? I would only do it with you.’ He said, ‘I’d only do it if you come too.’ That’s when we sent our proposal in about having us join the group again.”

The Swiss, who turned 38 last week, begins his quest for an eighth Cincinnati trophy on Tuesday evening against wild card Juan Ignacio Londero.

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