"Roger Federer is authentic with his emotions" - Chris Evert defends Swiss for his tearful reaction to blind Italian tenor at Zurich concert 

Former World No.1 Chris Evert has defended Roger Federer for his emotional reaction to blind Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli's performance at a Zurich concert.

Federer has visibly been enjoying a laid-back life following his retirement from tennis last year. The Swiss was recently spotted attending a live concert by famous tenor Bocelli at Hallenstadion on Monday (November 20). For his closing number of the night, Bocelli invited the 20-time Grand Slam champion to the stage.

The Swiss was evidently moved by Bocelli's gesture. He eventually burst into tears standing beside the tenor as he sang the powerful lyrics of "Nessun Dorma", an aria from the final act of Giacomo Puccini's Opera Turandot.

Taking to X (formerly Twitter) on Thursday, Evert agreed to a fan's comment about having nothing but pity for people mocking the Swiss for his reaction. The American observed how he was "authentic" with his emotions.

"Agree, those mocking tears have a real problem… Roger is authentic with his emotions…," Evert wrote.

Roger Federer also attended the British rock band Coldplay's "Music of the Spheres World Tour" concert in Zurich a few months back. The Swiss shared the stage with the band and even sang with their lead singer, Chris Martin. He also met singer and pianist Elton John during his "Farewell Yellow Brick Road" concert at Hallenstadion.

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Roger Federer was encouraged to share the stage with Coldplay by his daughter

The Swiss waves at fans at the 2023 Shanghai Masters

Roger Federer stated he was encouraged to share the stage with Coldplay by one of his daughters.

In a recent interview with Sky Sports, the former World No. 1 mentioned how his "half-asleep" daughter motivated him, saying "You only live once."

"I looked at my daughter and I told her, 'Do you think I should be going on stage to do this?' And she was half-asleep, but told me, 'Of course, papa, you only live once,'" the Swiss stated.

The 42-year-old admitted that he enjoyed the whole experience and also joked about his short-lived "music career" ending on the stage.

"Of course, I enjoyed it after. But, you know, I don't need sometimes those anxiety moments anymore. I'm just happy and quite content to be away from it all, but I finished on top, you know, this is my music career. I ended it right there, I dropped the mic," he added.

Roger Federer has four kids with his wife Mirka -- twin daughters Myla and Charlene, 14, and twin sons Lenny and Leo, 9.