Roger Federer hints at future Laver Cup captaincy role ahead of 2023 edition in Vancouver - 'That could be nice'
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Published 20/09/2023 at 09:31 GMT+1
The Laver Cup returns this week in Vancouver, Canada as Team World look to win the event for the second year in a row. Roger Federer will be in attendance and has spoken about potentially being a captain at the Laver Cup in the future. Federer, who co-founded the team event, also looked at what "superstar" doubles combinations he would like to see from both teams.
'Very exciting' - Federer pumped for 'superstar combinations' at Laver Cup
Video credit: SNTV
Roger Federer has hinted that he could be a future Laver Cup team captain as he prepares to watch the sixth edition of the tournament in Vancouver, Canada.
Federer co-founded the Laver Cup, which is a team event that has been described as tennis’ answer to golf’s Ryder Cup.
So far, old rivals Bjorn Borg and John McEnroe have captained Team Europe and Team World, respectively, since the start of the Laver Cup in 2017.
But Federer, who will be watching for all three days of the 2023 Laver Cup in Vancouver, suggested he could take over as a team captain in the future.
“I like being in the tennis sphere,” said Federer, who retired from tennis at last year’s Laver Cup in London.
“Maybe one day, I’ll be the captain of the team. There are no plans as of now, but I think that could be quite nice.”
With no Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray at this year’s Laver Cup, Team Europe have a new-look cast.
They have also seen Stefanos Tsitsipas and Holger Rune withdraw due to injury.
Federer said he is excited to see some “superstar” doubles combinations at the tournament, which starts on September 22 and will be exclusively live across Europe on Eurosport and discovery+.
“I always get very excited about Laver Cup doubles teams because there are always teams usually that we haven't seen in the past,” he said.
“So I would like to maybe see [Hubert] Hurkacz and [Andrey] Rublev play together.
“Then I think on the Team World side, I mean, I think there are tons of doubles teams there, with Ben Shelton, I see him playing quite a few also with Frances [Tiafoe]. I think he will be playing some, maybe Taylor Fritz, would like to see how he plays doubles.
"So I just like superstar combinations. I think that's always very exciting."
World No. 6 Andrey Rublev will lead Team Europe in the absence of Rune and Tsitsipas.
Rublev and Casper Ruud will be the only members of the team who have played at the Laver Cup before.
Asked what advice he would give to the team, Federer said: “I think it's thriving in the team environment and be well prepared and then embracing a big crowd.
“It's always... it depends on when you play, do you play opening day or on the second day? Depends, obviously. But listen to the ones that have already been at Laver Cup before and they can give you some sound advice and I'm sure they'll be fine.
“I mean, they're all excellent players here. We're talking about world-class players.”
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Stream and watch the 2023 Laver Cup exclusively live across Europe on Eurosport and discovery+
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