Former World No. 1 Roger Federer, who was in Mallorca, Spain yesterday to promote the tennis academy founded by colleague and longtime rival Rafael Nadal, was today the subject of death rumours on Twitter.
A number of ‘verified’ accounts on Twitter shared the news of Federer’s alleged ‘accident’, suggesting he was in “critical condition.”
The article in question, however, appears to have been written when Federer was physically present AT Rafael Nadal’s academy, where the Swiss helped promote the King of Clay’s children’s training programs. There is no doubt that the news is completely false, and Federer is in fact hale and hearty.
The photograph being circulated is from an old car crash on the Pan-Island Expressway in Singapore, and is unrelated completely to Roger Federer.
In addition to speaking at the event, Federer also participated in hitting practice with a number of the children who train at the academy. The former top-ranked player, who is almost unequivocally considered the greatest tennis player of all time, spoke extensively about Nadal, with whom the Swiss shares an iconic rivalry.
Federer spoke extensively of his Spanish rival, who leads the pair’s head-to-head record 23-11. Both players praised each other at the event, with Federer describing Nadal as “(my) ultimate rival,” while Nadal responded saying the Swiss was a “model and example” for all the children training at the academy.
The Swiss reminisced about the pair’s many Grand Slam finals, saying in his speech “...there was a time when we met EVERY Sunday in a final ... those days are now gone.”
“Rafa, you've been the one that influenced and inspired me the most. I had to reinvent many things in my game thanks to you,” Federer said, while Nadal repeatedly expressed gratitude to the Swiss for his presence at the event.
The pair, who have long shared a warm friendship off the court despite an intense rivalry, have both been instrumental in promoting the sport off court, with Nadal running a number of tennis academies in Spain, considered a hotbed of tennis training activity, to help spot young talent.
Several young tennis players from around the world play on the clay courts of Spain, with a number of training camps based out of the nation. Spain itself is known for producing not just clay court specialists but champions, with Garbine Muguruza winning the title at the French Open this year with a win over Serena Williams.
Nadal, perhaps the biggest sporting name to come out of the country, is joined by David Ferrer, Marc Lopez, past greats like Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario and Carlos Moya among a number of others.
Fans of Federer will be relieved to know that news of the accident is a hoax.
The Swiss ace will return to action in January at the Hopman Cup, a team tennis event in Australia, partnering former Rogers Cup winner Belinda Bencic.
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