Former world No.1 Stefan Edberg has talked about his time working with Roger Federer in an exclusive interview with Swedish newspaper Göteborgs-Posten.
Edberg’s two-year stint with Federer began in December 2013. During their time together, the Swiss player won 11 ATP titles and reached the final at three Grand Slam tournaments. The ending of the partnership in December 2015 was on mutual grounds, with both men speaking highly of each other since. Edberg has since been replaced in Federer’s team by another former player, Ivan ljubicic.
The first time Edberg talked with Federer was at the 2012 Swedish Open in Stockholm. Remembering his first conversation with the 17-time Grand Slam champion, Edberg was surprised about how well the two connected.
“I met him for the first time at the Stockholm Open 2012. I had actually never met him before, but then I thought that I peek into the changing room and greet him. He told me he had me as the idol when he was young and it was a pretty amazing discussion. It felt like we had known each other all their lives, and he was very spontaneous and open”. The Swede remembered.
The unexpected conversation in 2012 placed Edberg on a route towards something that he hadn’t previously considered, returning to the tour as a coach. Admitting that he would normally decline the offer, he said that he made an exception for Federer.
“That I would come back to the tour as a coach, I had never, ever imagined. And I did ask him myself: what can I really bring? But perhaps there was a reason he contacted me. And it had been anyone other than he who asked, I might have not said yes,” The 50-year-old admitted.
One of the biggest explanations behind why the two men got on so well was because Edberg understood what it is like for Federer on the tour. The Swede claimed 42 titles in his career (including six Grand Slam titles), an Olympic bronze medal and four Davis Cup trophies.
In Edberg’s era, he had great rivalries with Ivan Lendl and Boris Becker. Nevertheless, the Swede has stated that now is a ‘unique generation’ of men’s tennis.
“This generation has been the last ten years, especially with Djokovic, Nadal and Federer, they’ve won over 40 Grand Slams together. It is a golden generation of tennis players who have taken tennis to a new level and has been completely dominant over ten years. It has never happened before, so it’s a unique generation”. The former world No.1 said.
The former world No.1 is normally reluctant to talk about his experience of working with Federer, however, he gave an insight to Göteborgs-Posten. Speaking about how impressed he is with Federer’s working ethics, Edberg has labelled him as a one of a kind in the sport.
“I am deeply impressed by Roger as a person, both on and off the track, and can confirm that he is the world’s best tennis ambassador today. He has a greatness that few possess, a charisma and openness, genuine interest in tennis. He has had an amazing journey and it will continue for a while, although I’m not going to be the future”. Edberg said about Federer.
Edberg ended the interview by tipping Federer for further Grand Slam success. The 34-year-old currently has 17 Grand Slam titles, however, his last triumph occurred at the 2012 Wimbledon Championships. Attributing Federer’s major titles dry spell to Novak Djokovic’s dominance in recent years, Edberg said that another major title with Federer’s name on is “a possibility’.
