"One of my fondest memories" - Roger Federer on two-year anniversary of 'Match in Africa'
Roger Federer took to his Instagram handle on Monday to look back at the 2020 edition of the 'Match in Africa'. A charitable exhibition, the event saw the Swiss take on his good friend Rafael Nadal in a fun encounter.
The exhibition match was also attended by Bill Gates and Trevor Noah, and was organized in Cape Town by the Roger Federer Foundation. It raised a stunning $3.5 million in proceeds, all of which was spent on the education of children in Africa.
Federer has fond memories of 'Match in Africa', as evidenced by his Instagram story where he celebrated the two-year anniversary of the event.
"One of my fondest memories - 2 years ago today, South Africa," the 40-year-old wrote, accompanied by a love emoji and the South African flag.
The exhibition match featured two matches, one in the doubles format and another in singles. Federer and Gates first joined forces to beat Nadal and Noah in doubles, before the Swiss narrowly got the better of Nadal in the singles match.
The Match in Africa 2020 brought a mammoth 51,954 spectators to the venue, setting the record for the highest-ever attendance at a tennis match.
"An unforgettable night, thousand of helpers have made it possible," the Swiss maestro had written back then.
On this day 2 years ago - the Match in Africa between Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal was held in Cape Town with the largest attendance at a tennis match (51,954 fans). https://t.co/DuWMcL4GQT
It is pertinent to note that Roger Federer played his arch-rival in multiple charity exhibitions. The duo, popularly known as 'Fedal', first faced off in Zurich, Switzerland 12 years ago, before playing each other again in Madrid, Spain. Those two matches managed to raise a whopping $4 million combined, which was used to fund schooling, transport and food for children in Africa.
Roger Federer's foundation has been contributing towards the education of children for nearly two decades
Roger Federer traces part of his lineage to Africa; his mother was born in Kempton Park, South Africa. Federer started his foundation 18 years ago, to enable parents and local communities in Switzerland as well as Africa provide their children with a good education.
The 40-year-old has so far helped organize six exhibition matches in a bid to alleviate some of the major issues affecting children in Switzerland and Africa. His foundation has reportedly helped 2 million children over the last two decades.