"ATP Tour insisted the 'Roger Federer winning Halle for a 10th time' storyline was the better call" - Halle Open joins in on 'Reality Show' fun
Halle Open's X (formerly Twitter) account has joked that Roger Federer's triumph in the competition's 2019 edition was scripted.
ATP recently released a five-minute skit featuring some of the tour's most famous players, including Novak Djokovic, Carlos Alcaraz and Andy Murray. The premise of the video is that everything in the sport is scripted and that the tour's players are just characters being played by 'real' actors.
The sketch, titled 'ATP Tour: A Reality Show', also referenced Federer in one scene. It showed 'Federer coming out of retirement (CGI)' written on the screen where the directors pitched ideas for future episodes.
Joining in on the fun, Halle Open's X account quoted the video and joked that they wanted a German to win the title in the 2019 edition but the ATP 'insisted' on making Federer the champion once again.
"Now the secret is out we can tell you that: We desperately wanted to have a new German tournament champion in 2019, but the @atptour insisted the "Roger Federer winning Halle for a 10th time" storyline was the better call. Well... #TheTour #ThisIsTheatre," the tweet read.
Federer won the singles title in Halle in 2019 for a record-extending 10th time, beating Belgium's David Goffin in the final in straight sets. It was also his last title run at the event.
The Halle Open, held in Germany, hasn't had a German singles champion since 2016, when Florian Mayer beat compatriot Alexander Zverev in the final.
A brief look into Roger Federer's Halle Open title haul
No player comes close to Roger Federer in terms of total tournament wins at the Halle Open. The Swiss won the singles title a record 10 times, and also lifted the doubles trophy alongside compatriot Yves Allegro in 2005.
Federer lifted the singles trophy for the first time in 2003, and then won it consecutively for the next three years. He also won it in 2008, 2013-17, and 2019. His last entry came in 2021, where he was beaten by Felix-Auger Aliassime in the Round of 16.
The Swiss competed in 13 singles finals in Halle, losing just thrice. He was beaten in the summit clash by Lleyton Hewitt (2010), Germany's Tommy Haas (2012), and Borna Coric (2018).
Russia's Yevgeny Kafelnikov (3) and Haas (2) are the only other players to win the Halle singles title more than once since its inception in 1993.
The event was bumped up to WTA 500 status from 2015 onwards. The 2023 edition was won by Kazakhstan's Alexander Bublik, who downed Russia's Andrey Rublev in the final in three sets.