"When you talk about buy-ins, Roger Federer is a great example of it" - Swiss' former coach on his 1st day with him

Roger Federer's former coach, Paul Annacone, recently opened up about his first day working with the Swiss tennis legend.

Annacone has coached the likes of Pete Sampras, Tim Henman, Sloane Stephens, and Stan Wawrinka and worked with Federer from 2010 to 2013. Under the American's tutelage, the 20-time Grand Slam champion clinched the 2010 and 2011 ATP Finals titles, along with the Wimbledon crown in 2012.

Annacone recently appeared on the "Rock n Roll Tennis" podcast, which is hosted by Keith Fraser and former British No. 1 John Lloyd. During the interaction, he shed light on his experience of coaching Roger Federer for the first time.

The 60-year-old revealed that the former World No. 1 had a penchant for engaging in discussions about the game and had a great understanding of the sport.

"Roger Federer was the same way. So when I coached Roger, Roger loved to talk about things. And when you talk about buy-ins, Federer is a great example of it," Annacone said (at 17:55).

Annacone also disclosed how the former World No. 1 had sought his guidance and requested him to provide direction on their first day working together. He also talked about how the 42-year-old expressed that he would ask questions and seek clarification regarding his actions and their underlying rationale.

"The first day I was on the court with them, we got on the court, and he hit a few balls, and he turned to me and said, "OK, what do you want me to do now?" And I said, 'That's it? What do I want you to do now?' He goes, "Yeah, I'm warmed up.

"What do you want to do?" And I said, 'So that's it. I just tell you to do it?' And he said, "No." He said, 'I'm probably going to ask you why if I don't understand what we're doing. But you're the coach. So tell me what we're doing and why we're doing it. And let's get after it'", he added.

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"Roger Federer's one of the best people that I’ve ever seen at not sweating the small stuff and not sweating things that he can’t control" - Paul Annacone

Roger Federer and Paul Annacone at the 2011 Wimbledon Championships

Previously during an episode of the "Baseline Intelligence with Jonathan Stokke" podcast in October this year, Paul Annacone shared that a key lesson he has gleaned from Roger Federer is the significance of relinquishing control over things beyond one's grasp.

"One of the things I’ve learned about Roger is, how important it is to be able to let go of things you can’t control and how important it is to be able to really stay in the moment and to be content with trying to execute your game plan even if it’s not successful," Annacone said (at 19:30).

Annacone also expressed his admiration for the Swiss tennis legend's ability to remain composed and unfazed by trivial matters and circumstances beyond his control.

"What I mean by that is he’s one of the best people that I’ve ever seen at not sweating the small stuff and not sweating things that he can’t control," he added.

After Federer, Annacone worked with the likes of Stephens, Wawrinka, and Taylor Fritz. The Swiss, meanwhile, hung up his racket in September 2022.