Tennis legend Roger Federer is set to make a return to the court later this year after it was announced he would be playing in a celebrity doubles match at the Shanghai Masters.
Federer was in attendance last year for the tournament he won twice during his career, watching Novak Djokovic, Jannik Sinner and training with Carlos Alcaraz. All three of Djokovic, Sinner and Alcaraz pulled out of the Canadian Open earlier this month with beaten finalist Taylor Fritz criticising tennis’ schedule as a result.
The Masters tournament is set to take place in October, just over a month after the end of the U.S. Open, the final major of the year. Recently, two big names on the women’s side of the draw, Paula Badosa andQinwen Zheng both recently withdrew from the upcoming tournament
In a post on X from the Rolex Shanghai Masters account, Federer appeared in a video to confirm the news.
“Hello this is Roger and I’m really happy to be returning to Qizhong Stadium in Shanghai for the Rolex Shanghai Masters,” said Federer.
He continued: “Shanghai has always been a special place for me with great fans, unforgettable memories and a real love for the game. I look forward to seeing you there on October 10th. Shanghai, let’s meet.”
During his career, Federer was 23-6 during his eight trips to Shanghai. He defeated Djokovic on his debut in the tournament in 2010, before later losing the final to Andy Murray. Then, three years later, Federer tasted defeat in the final against Gael Monfils.
However, a year later, Federer was celebrating in Shanghai after he beat Gilles Simon. And then in 2017, Federer was once again celebrating in China after claiming his second Shanghai Masters title, this time after he defeated long-time rival and close friend Rafael Nadal in straight sets.
Federer will be playing alongside Donnie Yen, Wu Lei and Zheng Jie in the celebrity doubles match. Yen is a Hong Kong-American actor, who starred in the 2016 film ‘Rogue One: A Star Wars Story’.
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He also appeared in ‘John Wick: Chapter 4’ alongside Keanu Reaves.
Wu Lei is also an actor, while Zheng Jie is a two-time Grand Slam doubles winner, having won the women’s doubles at Wimbledon and the Australian Open in 2006.