The potential pairing of Martina Hingis and Roger Federer for the 2016 Rio Olympics is on course to become a reality after being endorsed by Hingis.
During an interview with Tennis Magazine France, Hingis said that the decision is now entirely up to the 34-year-old after she admitted that she would rather play the mixed doubles tournament with him. Hingis has won five Grand Slam titles this year, two in the women’s doubles with Sania Mirza and three in the mixed doubles with Leander Paes. She is currently ranked second in the world in doubles, behind Mirza (despite having the exact same points). Speaking about the 2016 Olympic Games, Hingis has acknowledged that Federer has a busy schedule and would also be happy to play with Stan Wawrinka if Federer was unable.
“As I always said, I would play with Roger. The decision is not in my hands”. She said.
“He has his own schedule and I can tell you that it is quite busy. If this does not happen, I hope to play with Stan (…) Stan told me he would be happy to play with me if Roger was not. Playing with one or the other will be a very good option anyway for me”.
The last time Hingis played alongside Federer in a competition was at the 2001 Hopman Cup, where they won the tournament, defeating America 2-1 in the final. Shortly after Federer’s recent loss to Novak Djokovic in the ATP World Tour Finals, the 17-time Grand Slam champion spoke about the upcoming Olympics, admitting that it is currently not his main priority.
“It’s not my number one priority. It starts with the Australian Open, which is just around the corner. That’s what I see next. Then, once Australia’s over, that’s when I look more towards the future”. Federer said.
The Olympic Games will begin on August 8th in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The defending champions for the tournament are the following :-
Men’s singles: Andy Murray (GBR)
Women’s singles: Serena Williams (USA)
Men’s doubles: Mike Bryan & Bob Bryan (USA)
Women’s doubles: Serena Williams & Venus Williams (USA)
Mixed doubles: Max Mirnyi & Victoria Azarenka (BLR)
Video: The last time Martina Hingis and Roger Federer played doubles together – 2001 Hopman Cup final (video via YouTube user Tsz Chun Lau).
