Roger Federer received a huge standing ovation upon his entrance to Rod Laver Arena to play his first tour-level match since 8 July 2016.
But what brings Federer to his feet? Musicals.
“I'm always one of the first guys to give standing ovations because I think it's really important because these guys do amazing,” Federer said Monday night in Melbourne after his first-round win at the Australian Open. “The amount of memorising they have to do, I find that mind-blowing. I'm not very good at remembering stuff like that.”
But Roger certainly proved he’s remembered his way around the tennis court. The four-time champion, who had been sidelined due to a knee injury, opened his campaign at the Australian Open with a 7-5, 3-6, 6-2, 6-2 win over Jurgen Melzer. After the victory, he had musicals on his mind.
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“I went to see ‘Singin’ in the Rain’ in Perth [and] I met the cast afterwards. I really enjoyed that,” he said. “I saw ‘Hamilton’ and ‘Finding Neverland’ in New York. I liked both of those. They were completely different. ‘Finding Neverland’ was super emotional. We were all crying, all seven people that were there – my daughters, my wife, my mom, everybody. It was a lot of fun.
"I saw ‘Elephant Man’ with Bradley Cooper in London. I just admire that kind of performance. It's life.”
The 35-year-old’s life in the Melbourne draw continues when he faces American #NextGenATP player Noah Rubin in the second round. No word on whether or not Federer will take in a musical in Melbourne before then.
