From crying over Roger Federer's retirement to laughing alongside the Swiss icon 2 years later: Carlos Alcaraz's Laver Cup journey goes full circle
Two years ago, Carlos Alcaraz was devastated by Roger Federer's retirement at the Laver Cup. In 2024, the Spaniard is now having the time of his life, laughing alongside the Swiss legend. Making his debut this year as one of Team Europe’s stars, Alcaraz’s Laver Cup journey has truly come full circle.
After Wimbledon in 2021, Federer did not play a singles event. He later announced that he would retire from tennis at the 2022 Laver Cup at the O2 Arena in London.
As the Swiss icon counted his final moments on the court, then-19-year-old Alcaraz was updating his X (formerly Twitter) account with heartfelt posts. In several updates, he used both the heartbreak and crying emojis while thanking Federer for his immense contribution to the sport.
Two years later, Carlos Alcaraz is enjoying candid moments with the 43-year-old at the Laver Cup. In a heartwarming moment, Federer was even spotted correcting Alcaraz's bowtie.
At the 2024 and seventh edition of the Laver Cup, Team Europe will be represented by Grigor Dimitrov, Daniil Medvedev, Alexander Zverev, Carlos Alcaraz, Casper Ruud, and Stefanos Tsitsipas, captained by Bjorn Borg.
Meanwhile, Team World features Francisco Cerundolo, Ben Shelton, Taylor Fritz, Frances Tiafoe, Alejandro Tabilo, and Thanasi Kokkinakis, captained by John McEnroe.
Roger Federer hopes to apologize to Carlos Alcaraz at the Laver Cup 2024 for an incident from years ago
When Carlos Alcaraz was a junior, he had the chance to practice with Roger Federer at Wimbledon. However, the Swiss legend, a record Wimbledon champion, chose to practice with Alcaraz's coach, Juan Carlos Ferrero, when asked if he wanted to play Alcaraz again.
During a pre-tournament press conference at the 2024 Laver Cup, Federer mentioned that he would like to apologize to the young Spaniard for that decision.
“I only practised once with him at Wimbledon when he was still a junior, and then the next day, my coach said, ‘Do you want to warm up with him again?’ and I said, ‘No, it’s okay, I’d rather warm up with his coach, who was my generation, Juan Carlos Ferrero.’ I can apologise to Carlos this week,” the eight-time Wimbledon champion said.
Meanwhile, Alcaraz is out to impress the Swiss tennis icon. The 21-year-old told the media:
"I'll be ready to make him [Federer] enjoy the match."
Alcaraz will have an opportunity to impress the 43-year-old on the first day of the event. He will partner Alexander Zverev to face Taylor Fritz and Ben Shelton in the doubles match.
Three singles matches will also be played on Day 1: Casper Ruud vs Francisco Cerundolo, Stefanos Tsitsipas vs Thanasi Kokkinakis, and Grigor Dimitrov vs Alejandro Tabilo.