Exclusive: Tommy Haas stunned by Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal’s Bond at Laver Cup – ‘Rafa could have been a dad any day’

Former tennis star Tommy Haas has spoken to Eurosport about his feelings after his good friend Roger Federer retired from the sport during the unforgettable Laver Cup broadcast in London.

“It was important for me to be there. I’ve never been to the Laver Cup before. There was a great atmosphere in the O2 arena. It was very emotional, almost too emotional.

“Roger is an amazing guy on and off the field – as a friend, as a father, as a husband. He’s always fun to be around. He has a great outlook on life and it’s great to hang out with people like him.

“Roger is now in the same situation as I was then: you are no longer on tour. But when we both play table tennis, we have fun, we have the ambition to win.

“You can talk about Roger’s career for a long time. It’s unbelievable what he achieved, how long and consistently. He played tennis like he was from another planet, that was from 2004 to 2006.”

Haas also paid tribute to Nadal, who made sure he was there with his great friend on his big night, even though he expected the child home at any moment. He flew back to Mallorca after the match and Haas said it was a wonderful statement.

Nadal and Federer’s doubles match was on September 23 and Nadal’s baby was born in early October.

“Unbelievable, a lot of emotions,” Haas said. “If you’re an insider, you know Rafa and Roger get on well. Rafa could have been a father at any time in London at that time and he was still there.

“Roger is so incredibly popular. You become a fan of the guy relatively quickly. You could feel it. There was no one in the crowd of 18,000-19,000 at the O2 who didn’t have tears in their eyes. The farewell couldn’t have been better.”

Although Federer is now happily retired, Nadal’s illustrious career lives on and he will aim to extend his record haul of 22 Grand Slam singles titles as he bids to defend his Australian Open title in January.

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