Federer faced a tricky and probably frustrating situation, but he handled it with class just as he did back when he was dominating the grass courts of Wimbledon
Imagine Manny Pacquiao not being allowed inside the MGM Grand Garden Arena or Steph Curry getting barred from entering the Chase Center. Sounds unreal, right? Well, the unreal just happened to Roger Federer.
On the Daily Show with Trevor Noah, the tennis great revealed how he was refused entry at Wimbledon.
The TV host was dying in laughter as the eight-time Wimbledon champion told the story. It began when Federer invited his entourage for a tea over at the prestigious Grand Slam tournament. They were in London so it seemed like a great idea, was it not?
When they arrived at the legendary tennis grounds, however, things didn’t quite go as Federer had planned.
“I drive up to the gate where usually guests would come in. So I get out, and I tell my coach who was with me, ‘I’ll quickly go out and speak to the security lady. I got this," RF recalls.
“So then I get out and I’m like, ‘Hello I was wondering how I could get into Wimbledon?’ She asked if I had a membership card. When you win Wimbledon, you become a member automatically. And honestly I don’t know about membership cards, they are probably at home somewhere and I’ve just been traveling so I had no idea.”
“I look at her in a panic one last time, and say, ‘I’m so sorry but I have won this tournament eight times, please, believe me, I am a member,'” he pleaded to no avail.
At this point the lady guard must have been thinking she’s dealing with a con man who’s trying to get access to the club. Federer was denied yet again, and Noah just could not contain himself as the Swiss legend continued to tell the story.
Instead of throwing a fit, Roger Federer handled the situation with class just as he did back when he was dominating the grass courts of Wimbledon. The 20-time Grand Slam winner then retreated and found another gate where he was immediately accommodated.
“The security guard standing there says, ‘Oh my god, Mr. Federer what are you doing here? Do you have your membership card? I said I don’t, but the security guard let me in and organized it all,” he said.
As for the security lady, he still got the nice guy treatment from one of the sport’s undisputed GOATs.
“And I thought of going over to the other side and giving the other security guard a wave, but I didn’t do it,” RF said in jest.