Google News Leonardo Mayer recalls almost stunning Roger Federer at Shanghai Masters
by DZEVAD MESIC | VIEW 4738
Former world No. 21 Leonardo Mayer admitted he never thought he would have a chance to stun Roger Federer at the Shanghai Masters. Meyer clashed Federer for the first time at the Shanghai Masters in 2014 and fell just short of stunning the record 20-time Grand Slam champion.
Federer, a former world No. 1, escaped with a 7-5 3-6 7-6 (7) win after saving seven match points. On Thursday, Mayer called it a career. “I still find that match unbelievable, because I never thought I would have a chance to beat him on that occasion,” Mayer told the ATP website.
“The day after losing I was happy, it’s very difficult to play against someone you admire that much; you always see them on TV and you can’t imagine playing against them. “It was important to me to play with Federer even though I didn’t beat him.
If I’d beaten him it would only have given me 45 more points at the time and allowed me to say ‘I beat him,‘ that’s all”.
Meyer has great memories of Hamburg
Meyer finished his career with two ATP titles and both of those titles came in Hamburg.
"It was really crazy. I liked watching it on TV, and by chance when I got there I felt comfortable, I had nothing to complain about,” he joked. “The court was incredible, the balls, the city, the club, everything.
I won with fast shots, slow shots, I liked everything because I felt like a winner there”. Mayer absolutely enjoyed living tennis. "Tennis was a very important part of my life, a school, a primary school, a secondary school, a university, I qualified and now I’ve retired,” he laughed.
“A tennis career is wonderful, it’s very demanding. You grow up very early, with so much responsibility from older people and you miss out on certain things, but I have no complaints. I had a great time, I loved the journey I went on, I achieved what I wanted to and I learned so much from it."