Wawrinka Reflects on his Career with Federer: From Sparring Partner to Grand Slam Champion

“Being part of this generation, with the ‘Big 3’ or the ‘Fab 4’ with Andy Murray, has without a doubt made me improve,” said the 2008 Olympic champion in doubles with Federer, looking back on his career so far.

Of course he won fewer titles due to the dominance of Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic, but his game didn’t suffer – quite the opposite.

“It was always great for me to have the opportunity to play against them, to try to beat them and to watch them,” explained the three-time Grand Slam champion.

He added: “Obviously it’s better to have been part of their era.”

Wawrinka on Federer: “A very important part of my career”

Above all, his relationship with compatriot Federer was a special one.

“I had a lot of heavy defeats against him. But we also had a lot of big wins together. That’s why he’s a very important part of my career,” the 38-year-old looked back on the duels with his friend.

Federer usually had the upper hand. Federer won 23 of the 26 duels. Wawrinka was only able to beat his compatriot on sand – twice at the Masters in Monte Carlo (2009 and 2014) and once in Roland-Garros (2015).

Wawrinka initially Federer’s sparring partner

The two Swiss got to know each other in fundamentally different phases of their careers. While Federer was already an established part of the ATP tour, Wawrinka entered the tennis circuit as a newcomer.

“I was his sparring partner. I can guarantee that I was very, very nervous. He wasn’t number one in the world yet, but he was already at the top,” Wawrinka said of the first encounter with the 20-time grand Slam Winner.

show of force! Wawrinka makes Tiafoe despair

2023-08-30 16:45:24
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