Roger Federer receives uplifting message from tennis great Rod Laver after Wimbledon axed

Tennis legend Rod Laver sent his well wishes to Roger Federer and struck an optimistic tone as he told fans “our great game will re-emerge” from the impact of the global coronavirus pandemic.

 
Tennis was rocked on Wednesday when Wimbledon announced the tournament was being cancelled due to the worldwide outbreak.

To put the cancellation into context, it is the first time since the Second World War that there will be no play at SW19.

Among the first to react to the news was Roger Federer, who said on Twitter he was “devastated” but insisted he would be back in 2021.

The Swiss star is recovering from knee surgery in February and earlier this week posted a video of himself performing trick shots at his home.

And Laver, who won the Wimbledon singles title four times, responded to the footage by wishing Federer and family well and sending a hopeful message to disappointed fans.

“You make it look easy Roger. Hope you and the family are well and safe,” Laver tweeted.

“Very sorry to see @Wimbledon cancelled today but this will pass and our great game will re-emerge. Looking forward to seeing everyone again.”

When tennis will actually ‘re-emerge’ remains far from certain.

In response to Wimbledon’s cancellation, the ATP and WTA extended the suspension of the season until July 13.

But with the number of Covid-19 cases continuing to rise, the global nature of tennis may mean the sport faces a longer wait than others to return.

This particularly applies to North America where the US and Canada are struggling to ‘flatten the curve’ and the death toll is rising every day.

The US Open is due to start on August 31 and officials at the USTA insist they are still planning for it to go ahead.

The statement read: “We understand the unique circumstances facing the All England Lawn and Tennis Club and the reasoning behind the decision to cancel the 2020 Wimbledon Championships.

“At this time the USTA still plans to host the US Open as scheduled, and we continue to hone plans to stage the tournament.

“The USTA is carefully monitoring the rapidly-changing environment surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic, and is preparing for all contingencies.

“We also rely on the USTA’s Medical Advisory Group as well as governmental and security officials to ensure that we have the broadest understanding of this fluid situation.

“In all instances, all decisions made by the USTA regarding the US Open will be made with the health and well-being of our players, fans, and all others involved in the tournament.”

Federer’s Practice, Nadal’s Message: Tennis At Home Roundup

Your favourite players are all back at home, but they’re finding plenty of ways to stay active. From Roger Federer hitting against a wall to Rafael Nadal working out on the treadmill, find out how the biggest names in tennis are keeping busy.

Federer shared how he’s been staying in shape while practising social distancing.

Another glimpse into the stay at home practice routine
I hope everyone is safe and healthy. Stay positive. Keep active. Support one another. We will get through this together #stayhome pic.twitter.com/ZVqMZ2ZpXc

— Roger Federer (@rogerfederer) April 2, 2020

Nadal encouraged his fans to keep a positive attitude.

Hay que animarse y seguir!!!! #yomequedoencasa #iorestoacasa#istayhome #jerestechezmoi pic.twitter.com/3uX6pc4ubo

— Rafa Nadal (@RafaelNadal) April 2, 2020

Grigor Dimitrov found a unique way to continue working on his strength.

Grigor making this look easy…

Think you could pull this off?

: @GrigorDimitrov | #tennisathome pic.twitter.com/IPGTRq1KOA

— ATP Tour (@atptour) April 1, 2020

Kyle Edmund gave thanks to the frontline workers who are helping combat COVID-19 and urged everyone to stay at home.

"What's going on is bigger than tennis right now."

Hear from Brit @kyle8edmund via @QueensTennis pic.twitter.com/WfLnbtWR3X

— ATP Tour (@atptour) April 2, 2020

Yuichi Sugita is sporting an unconventional training kit these days.

SAMURAI training at home.

日本の文化で世界を元気に!!
バカ殿様に届けばいいな!! pic.twitter.com/Tk4NJEIaAJ

— 杉田祐一 / Yuichi SUGITA (@sugitayuichi88) April 2, 2020

Lloyd Harris is taking his tennis to new heights.

Now this is cool #tennisathome with @lloydharris63 pic.twitter.com/6bp1IUb4w1

— ATP Tour (@atptour) April 2, 2020

Roberto Carballes Baena is still working hard on his fitness.

¡Que nada te pare!

@Robertocarba93 #YoMeQuedoEnCasa | #StayAtHome | #TennisAtHome pic.twitter.com/6aPQf3Lmkc

— ATP Tour en Español (@ATPTour_ES) April 2, 2020

Aisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi helped donate food bags to those in need in his native Pakistan.

Alhamdulliah hv delivered 500 ration bags to 500 families with help of @Rizq_Sharefood and in sha Allah goal is to reach 500 more in next few days ,thanks to all the contributions to #stopwarstartennis . Let's keep working on making hunger free pakistan #CoronaVirusPakistan pic.twitter.com/VVGL1sRFtO

— Aisam ul Haq Qureshi (@aisamhqureshi) April 1, 2020

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Few days ago my foundation #stopwarstarttennis and @shizahassanofficial joined hands with @rizq.sharefood to help them raise funds for their #ehsaaskaro campaign delivering ration bags worth Rs3500 to families in need during the corona virus pandemic. By the Grace of Allah the distribution process has begun and @rizq.sharefood teams are going door to door,delivering ration bags following their data base to the most needy ,poor ,hungry ,daily wagers in lahore and Islamabad for now. I visited @rizq.sharefood hub in lahore today to see their distribution process and delivered a few ration bags among some deserving families myself. I am super thankful to all the donors who in response to my request contributed Rs1000000 and grateful to Pakistan's leading fashion designer @shizahassanofficial for matching that amount and as promised my foundation stop war start tennis has added Rs 1.5million making it a total of Rs 3.5million Alhamdulliah This amount will help @rizq.sharefood to deliver 1000 ration bags among 1000 needy families in sha Allah . We have to work together and help each other out to make a hunger free pakistan and get pass this corona virus pandemic in sha Allah Stay safe ,stay happy ,stay healthy, stay blessed Everyone #coronavirus #coronaviruspakistan #thankful #grateful #humbled #donation #hungerfreepakistan #helpingothers #worktogether #staysafe #stayhappy #stayblessed #stayhealthy #stayathome #rationbags #distributingfood #coronainpakistan

A post shared by Aisam Qureshi (@aisamqureshi) on Mar 29, 2020 at 8:47am PDT