ROGER FEDERER describes himself as Andy Murray’s No1 fan – but he warned the Scot not to become a couch potato.
The Swiss maestro, 42, was backstage on Thursday as Murray received a hero’s tribute night after he and elder brother Jamie lost their men’s doubles first-round clash on Centre Court.
He has been in London since last Tuesday morning but when he touched down in the UK, it was soon announced that Murray was pulling out of the singles competition.
Federer, as shown in a recent Prime Video documentary, broke down in tears when he hung his racquet in September 2022 at the Laver Cup at the O2 Arena.
The 20-time Grand Slam champion has made a successful transition into retirement.
And he has plenty of tips for the two-time Wimbledon champion who will say goodbye officially to tennis at the Paris Olympics.
Federer, who embraced fellow father-of-four Murray in the fitness room, told the BBC: “Andy played through the difficult times in the last few years, with everybody saying he shouldn’t be doing it, maybe he should retire.
“People said, this is not what he is supposed to be. He’s not winning anymore.
“For him to keep going, I was always his No1 fan and supporter that he should be doing what he thinks is right.
“What he feels in his heart of hearts he should be doing. So, I’m happy that he kept on going.
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“It was hard to watch on Thursday. I know exactly how he feels going through this whole process. We love the game equally so, so, so much.
“We’d love to that forever. He said that on court. I share that opinion completely.
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“I think he’ll see once he’s on the other side, actually what a great decision it will be for his life, for his body and mind, to get away from it.
“He has tried so hard to get himself back on court, I don’t even want to know how the last couple of weeks have been for him. It must have been brutal.
“I’ve had some brutal matches against him, almost like 20 times, he was hard to play against. What a wonderful champion. He’ll always be remembered here as one of the all-time greats.”
Federer last played at Wimbledon in the 2021 quarter-finals and he says it feels “strange” and “odd” to return as a spectator – not as part of the playing field.
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On site with his four kids, wife and parents, he said he could feel the “nostalgia” as he walked through the All England Club gates.
The record eight-time Wimbledon champion added: “Look, I felt the transition for me was really smooth.
“Mentally, I was ready that it could end at any point in time. This was my mindset for 10-15 years.
“Andy will go through it his way. He might struggle for a couple of years. Or the next day he might wake up and go, ‘This is the best thing, why didn’t I do this much earlier?’
“He has four children now. He’ll be kept very busy. Staying busy right away is great.
“What you don’t want to have happened, which I had on maybe two occasions in the last year-and-a-half, is you sit on the couch at home.
“I have nothing to do, I am alone, the kids are in school, the wife is off doing something. This is a terrible feeling. So, I think it’s good to stay really busy.”
