The Morning After The Night Before For Federer
The Morning After The Night Before For Federer
Swiss star returns to AELTC after celebrating till 5am
After celebrating with his friends and family until 5am, a weary but beaming Roger Federer returned to the All England Club at 10am on Monday morning to spend another 90 minutes talking to the media.
The Swiss star had spent two and a half hours in press on Sunday, following his straight-sets win over Marin Cilic that earned him a record-breaking eighth Wimbledon crown and 19th Grand Slam championship.
After a 20-minute press conference in English and Swiss German, the 35-year-old Federer conducted six TV interviews on the competitors’ lawn, including live crosses with BBC and NBC, before returning to Centre Court for a photo with the AELTC staff, keeping his trophy close by at all times.
“My head’s ringing, I don’t know what I did last night. I drank too many different types of drinks I guess!” joked Federer in his press conference. “After the ball we went to a bar and there was about 30 or 40 of my friends there. We had a great time. I got to bed at 5am, woke up and didn’t feel good! The last hour, finally, I’m feeling somewhat OK again. But we had a good time,” smiled the Swiss.
Federer also confirmed he did not have the opportunity to dance with women’s singles champion, Garbine Muguruza, at the Champions’ Ball after she had proposed it on Twitter. “There was no music,” laughed the Basel native. “It was a great dinner, but we arrived so late. There’s so much press to do that by the time I got there they were already on the main course. I was happy to be there again, it never grows old.
“The occasion [to dance with Muguruza] never really came. We were up on stage, but there was no music so it’s hard to get going! It was more just a photo shoot.”
Asked what his goals are going forward, Federer responded, “The target now is to enjoy being Wimbledon champion for a year and Australian Open champion. I haven’t set my sights on a [specific] number of Grand Slams that I want to achieve. I’ve never really had that. I was very content with 17, so of course I was going to be happy with 18 and I’m even happier with 19.
“I think for me it’s really just about enjoying myself, staying healthy. I’m playing for big titles at this stage. If you win bigger tournaments and beat the best players, you will be rewarded [in the Emirates ATP Rankings]. So I need to be clever with my body.”