"It was so fun sitting next to Princess Catherine...sometimes we have to be careful we don’t speak too much" - Roger Federer
Roger Federer may have stepped away from competition, but the tennis legend continues to keep in touch with the world with candid interviews, interactions with current players and occasionally stopping by the stands to watch matches.
The Swiss attended this year's Wimbledon, being welcomed into the Centre Court Royal Box to a rousing reception. He was later seen enjoying his former on-court rival Andy Murray in action, something that even the Brit ackowledged did not happen very often.
Federer has since spoken about life after retirement in an interview with The Guardian, touching upon a range of topics including his family, his latest collection of clothing, his brand endorsements, off-court commitments as well his recent Wimbledon visit.
The 20-time Grand Slam winner was seen sitting next to Catherine, Princess of Wales in the Royal Box during Murray's first round match on Centre Court, with the two being spotted indulging in conversation between points.
Speaking about the encounter, Federer said he knew Princess Catherine quite well. He stated that it was easy to make conversation with the Princess as she was very knowledgable about tennis.
"It was so fun sitting next to Princess Catherine." Roger Federer said. "I know her quite well. She is an avid tennis fan, and she plays herself."
The Swiss went on to add that the duo had to at times make sure that they were not talking too much, and restirct their conversation to between points only.
"Sometimes we have to be careful we don’t speak too much. You can talk, and then it’s super-quiet, and then you have to applaud."
"Life without the game has definitely been something I didn’t know how I would take" - Roger Federer
Roger Federer also spoke about life away from the tennis court, saying it was not the easiet to adapt to being away from the Tour schedule that had dominated most of his adult life.
The 41-year-old said he tried for very long to return to competition and leave the game "healthy".
"Life without the game, and life without the fans, and life without the schedule that has dominated my life for 25 years has definitely been something I didn’t know how I would take," Roger Federer said. "For the longest time I tried to come back and give it one more shot and leave the game healthy, but it was not doable."
Federer mentioned that the COVID-19 induced break may have helped slow things down and make the transition to life away from tennis slightly easier.
"But the good/bad thing about Covid, and with my knee surgery, is that everything started to slow down in the past three years, so it wasn’t like I came from playing 100 matches and then boom, it’s over," he said.