Roger Federer took some time out during his exhibition series with Pete Sampras to talk with CNN International's Anjali Rao on Talk Asia over the weekend.
In case you missed it (I watched the original airing and nearly all the replays because I kept getting called away from the tv), there is a transcript of the interview over at CNN's website. Another blog on Federer has also compiled the videos of the interview as well.
As many of you most probably know, ATP has a wonderful magazine called DEUCE which they launched a few years ago. But I don't think did too well on print because it is now being published exclusively online. Having it online though should be a big plus since it will be more accessible to many (like me) who are interested in reading the articles in the magazine but cannot afford to pay for a season's worth of issues.
This year's summer issue has very enlightening and fun articles about many ATP players like Federer, Djokovic, Gonzalez and Karlovic. It's a joy and refreshing change to read about off-court facts these players.
The article about Federer in particular lists his "last times": the last time he went somewhere and wasn't recognized, the last time he had to hire a tennis court or the last time he flew economy. My favorite was his response when asked about the last time he played a practical joke in the locker room:
Basically everyday with everybody. In Cincinnati we had a fight in the locker room with Dmitry Tursunov. There were probably six people involved, including three or four players, throwing about 50 balls at each other for 15 minutes. I won! [Editor's note: Towards the end of the fight, the Penn ball mascot chose the wrong time to return to the locker room and was mercilessly pummeled.]
Sigh. I must have been too tired from yesterday to wake up for today's 4am delayed telecast of Federer/Ferrer quarterfinal match at Monte Carlo. Good thing somebody's posted about four minutes worth of highlights of the match on YouTube. Still, there's nothing like watching the entire match. And besides, it's hard to spot the ball in the tiny video and especially against the red clay; it's difficult even when viewing the video full screen since the video quality just isn't good enough.
Anyway, there's also the post-match interview Federer gave where he recalls his very first ATP career match win and corresponding earnings (geesh, what a memory). He seems at least satisfied with this 500th win--which also brings his career earnings above US$30 million--although he didn't look exactly that ecstatic at matchpoint on the video.
A resurgent Juan Carlos Ferrero, who came back from behind to defeat Richard Gasquet 5-7 7-5 6-2, will be the next player to attempt to prevent Federer from reaching the Monte Carlo finals for the second straight time. The other semifinals match pits defending champion Rafael Nadal against nemesis Tomas Berdych. Since Nadal has lost to Berdych in all three meetings they have had so far--all on hard court though--this is certainly an interesting and exciting match-up.
Whoa! Roger Federer's on the cover of the May/June 2007 issue of Men's Vogue magazine.
There's a nice lengthy revealing article inside as a result of the author's interview with Federer in Dubai where Federer has established a second home and base. Among many other things, Federer talks about meeting tennis legend Bjorn Borg, his friendship with Tiger Woods (the same issue also contains an article devoted to him), his rivalry with ATP's number two player Rafael Nadal, and how longtime girlfriend Mirka Vavrinec has helped make him the person and player that he is today (such a lucky guy, such a lucky girl!).
This is complemented by a slideshow of awesome photos of a dashing and impeccably-dressed Federer taken at different locations around Dubai. (Move over Maria! Roger is one hot model!)
In an exclusive interview, Federer talks about his dreams to be a rock star or a football star who has scored the winning goal at the World Cup, and, of course, of winning at Wimbledon like his idols. He also mentions the exhilaration he gets from playing before a crowd and what his girlfriend, Mirka, means to him.
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