Roger Federer’s legacy according to Stan Wawrinka

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Stan Wawrinka has had a continuous association with Roger Federer through his long and storied career. The fellow Swiss tennis player has also revealed how he has always looked upto Federer both as an older brother and a friend, whose professional career started 4 years before that of Wawrinka.

The two had partnered in the Davis Cup over a 10-year span from 2004-09, 2011-12, and 2014-15, have been doubles partners on five occasions in 2008, 2011-12 and 2014. Their double stint was largely successful and included a gold at the 2008 Olympics, and only one loss to Mike Bryan and Mardy Fish of the USA at the World Group first round.

Wawrinka has recently been in the news for calling the Paris Masters champion Holger Rune “a baby” after their match, in which the Swiss lost. This has brought into attention an older encounter of Wawrinka with Federer at the ATP World Tour Finals in 2014, which prompted Federer’s wife Mirka to label him a “crybaby”, as revealed in an interview.

According to Wawrinka, he is glad that locker rooms had no microphones back in 2014, or the private exchanges between the players would have led to unnecessary attention. The two Swiss veterans are said to have subsequently settled the matter amicably, and reappeared to play together in the Davis Cup, and leading Switzerland to its only Davis Cup title.

Wawrinka has also stated that it is important for him to have the belief that he still has what it takes to defeat the best, to continue playing and embrace challenges. The 37-year-old has not mentioned retirement yet, and recently took on top players including wins against Daniil Medvedev, Casper Ruud, Frances Tiafoe, and Reilly Opelka.