"If I told him to try a two-handed backhand, he would try it" - Ljubicic talks humble Federer ahead of his retirement

| by Sebastian Dahlman

Ivan Ljubicic was the coach of Roger Federer in his final years and the Croatian shared a lot about htier relationships as the Swiss maestero bids farewell to tennis today.

Federer will transition from being an active player to a former player in a few hours. Yes, he is retiring, which many tennis fans would prefer to never happen. Ljubicic spoke with Tennis Majors in advance of tonight's last dance in London for Federer.

"Basic stuff – my perception of his game and how he should play, what he can improve, do I feel that he can still win Slams, etc. A few weeks later, we were in Dubai together. The thing is – even before all that, we were really close and we talked about tennis numerous times, so there was no need for a trial period of sorts" - Ljubicic on what Federer asked him after he agreed to coach him.

Ljubicic was surprised when Federer contacted him and asked him to become a coach and he's unsure what drew the Swiss to him:

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"Maybe it was not about my tennis mind at all! You have to ask him, but maybe he just trusted me. Being a coach at that level does not consist of saying “you need to hit backhand like this” or “do this”. No, at that elite level, it is more about spending time together and maybe changing the way a player thinks at some point."

Working with Federer was a delight for Ljubicic because the legend is very receptive to any feedback and very willing to try new things: "It is just that you have the feeling that he soaks up everything you say and he is always open to trying new things. If I told him to try a two-handed backhand, he would try it."

Having to retire due to your body not being able to handle it anymore is not ideal for any tennis player but Federer came to terms with that. It's natural, it happens although Ljubicic noted it's not ideal: "It is not ideal, but considering Roger wanted to play tennis until he was one hundred years old, this was the only way for him to stop. There’s no way that he would ever stop on his own!"

"A wonderful human being. Genius. Sport. Excellence, in everything he does." concluded Ljubicic in the end.

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