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Birthday Boy: Roger Federer Celebrates 29th
By Sean Rudolph
© Tennis Canada
(August 9, 2010) Roger Federer enjoyed a sweet Sunday in Toronto. The 16-time Grand Slam champion celebrated his 29th birthday at the Rogers Cup on Sunday. NHL standout Sidney Crosby was on hand to serve Federer with a birthday cake.
"I'm older, you can tell, right," Federer joked as Crosby, who turned 23 on Saturday, presented him with the cake.
Federer, who took nearly six weeks off after falling to Tomas Berdych in the Wimbledon quarterfinals, took a Mediterranean cruise with his family during his time away from the game. The two-time Rogers Cup champion said he's happy to be back.
"It is a great feeling to be celebrating my birthday with my family here in Canada," Federer said. "I am excited to compete again these days after having spent several weeks preparing intensely for the second half of the 2010 season."
Federer will be accompanied by Paul Annacone, former coach of Pete Sampras, as he makes his return to tournament tennis tomorrow in Toronto. Federer, who has worked with Swiss Davis cup captain Severin Luthi as a coaching consultant in recent years, is working with Annacone on a trial basis.
The third-ranked Swiss has a first-round bye and will play his first match on Tuesday night facing either Argentine Juan Ignacio Chela or Alejandro Falla, who nearly pulled off a shocking upset of Federer in the Wimbledon first round in June before Federer battled back to escape with a five-set victory.
Crosby, an avid tennis fan who was at the 2008 US Open to watch Federer beat Andy Murray and capture his fifth consecutive US Open crown, was scheduled to hit with Federer, but rain washed away the planned hit. Instead, the pair shared cake and conversation.
"He mentioned that he watched the Olympics and stuff like that. I’d mentioned that I’d seen him play in the U.S. Open, pretty general talk," said Crosby. "I think it’s pretty neat, being athletes and being able to relate to certain things, it’s always fun to understand and learn what he may go through."
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