Picture Credit: Twitter/@Wimbledon
In a major development, Roger Federer visited the SW19 on Sunday as the All England Club celebrated the centenary of Center Court. Former Wimbledon champion, who is not participating in the tournament for the first time since its debut in 1999, was spotted wearing a black suit and black shades as he was accompanied by the security officials. Notably, Federer last played competitive tennis at Wimbledon last year when he was ousted in the quarter-finals.
Wimbledon's celebration of the centenary of the Center Court will involve recalling back at some of the iconic moments from the past with former champions and big names gracing the occasion. A new tradition of playing on the middle Sunday of the tournament was introduced only this year.
Roger Federer returned to the Center Court on Sunday, with a resounding welcome and thunderous applause from the crowd at the court as he went to stand alongside Serbia's top-seeded Novak Djokovic. Both the Tennis greats shared a light moment as Djokovic murmured something in Federer's ears.
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The 40-year-old winner of 20 Grand Slam titles expressed his desire to play on the grass as he stated that he missed playing here. While addressing the gathering at Center Court, Federer said, "I hope I can come back one more time. I have missed it here." He also recalled the moment from last year when he realized that returning to the grass-court will not be an easy task and he knew that the upcoming year will be a tough one. "I didn't think it was going to take this long to come back. The knee has been rough on me," he said.
Notably, Roger Federer was one of the hosts at the event that preceded the program of matches on middle Sunday. "I have been lucky enough to play a lot of matches on this court. It feels awkward to be here today in a different type of role but great to be here with all the other champions. This court has given me my biggest wins and my biggest losses," he concluded.