"Roger Federer's genius is finding joy in everything he does; he always enjoyed it" - Former coach Ivan Ljubicic
Roger Federer was considered a genius on the tennis court by many a pundit, and according to former coach Ivan Ljubicic, the Swiss was the same at everything he did.
From doing press conferences to spending time with sponsors, the 20-time Grand Slam champion brought a level of enjoyment with him that made him truly stand out in the sport.
In an exclusive interview with Tennis Majors, Ljubicic, who coached Federer between 2016 and 2022, shed light on the 'sheer joy' the former World No. 1 derived from playing tennis.
The Croat admitted that that unique ability was the main reason for Federer's longevity in the sport and fondly reminisced on how the Swiss maestro would pick any racquet he saw and start swinging.
"His genius is also finding joy in everything he does, even in doing press conferences, even meeting up with people, spending time with sponsors, he always enjoyed it. It does not necessarily come automatically, but he finds the way to enjoy it," Ljubicic said.
"And I think that’s the key why you can keep on for so long and actually have fun. And tennis, it’s something different. I mean, whenever he sees the racket, any kind of racket, he would pick it up and start swinging. You know, it’s just love for hitting that ball is just too big," he added.
Ivan Ljubicic also commented on Roger Federer's short-lived partnership with Swedish tennis legend Stefan Edberg.
The Croat was of the opinion that the 20-time Major winner brought Edberg on board because of the respect he had for him and in the hope that he could learn something from someone he considered his idol.
"One of the reasons, I guess, that Roger hired (Stefan) Edberg as well, because he was his idol. At that level, these guys, they are looking for somebody that they respect, regardless of why, it doesn’t matter, maybe, at the beginning," Ljubicic said.
"And then you see if it’s going to work or not because it’s really very few people that that these guys would sit down and listen (to), in a way that they could learn something," he added.
"The only way for Roger Federer to stop was the body was not able to carry on" - Ivan Ljubicic
Ivan Ljubicic also touched on Roger Federer's retirement, saying that the only way for the Swiss to stop was a physical injury that limited his ability to play. Eventually, that was what happened, as a knee injury forced the Swiss to hang up his racquet last year after having one final hurrah in front of fans at the Laver Cup.
Interestingly, Ljubicic reckons that the 20-time Grand Slam champion's natural tennis skills would have kept him in the top five even if he had lost some of his fitness due to age.
The Croat was, in a way, thankful that the decision to retire was taken out of Federer's hands because of his injury, as it would have been impossible for him to make that decision otherwise.
"I think that was the only way for him to stop, honestly. I don’t think there was any other way. His ability would not go down. His fitness would maybe, with time, he would be slightly slower, slightly this, slightly that, but his genius would still keep him in the top, whatever, five," Ljubicic said.
"I honestly think that the only way for him to stop was the body was not able to carry on. Looking back, because he loves it so much, there was no way for him to make a decision to stop playing because, I don’t know,: ‘I don’t want to play anymore’. That would never happen," he added.