Roger Federer announces his on-court return for a Shanghai Masters doubles match

Roger Federer was announced to play a doubles match at the upcoming Shanghai Masters via his official social media account. The Swiss Master will make his return to the tennis courts to play a friendly match at the penultimate Masters 1000 of the year.

Since Roger Federer's retirement in 2022, he has had several public appearances, though not on the courts. The former world No. 1 recently appeared at Rafael Nadal's farewell ceremony at the French Open and shortly after was in the Royal Box at Wimbledon watching some matches during the tournament.

The 20-time Grand Slam champion also revealed at the beginning of the year that he hoped to return to the courts to play some exhibitions, and after Nadal's retirement, there was also speculation about seeing him doing some exhibitions around the world with his old rival, something that does not yet seem close to happening.

"I have been busy with many trips and work with the foundation,” he commented at the beginning of this year. “I traveled with my family to South Africa to see the school projects, to make a difference in hundreds of children, to give them the opportunity to have a quality education."

"I would love to play some tennis again. I would like to start playing two/three times a week and hopefully be back on exhibition courts. Hopefully, I can fill a couple of stadiums around the world. I don't have plans at the moment, but I know I need to train for it. I miss it a bit, honestly, because I have hardly played since I retired."

Federer is back to Shanghai

And this Sunday brought good news for fans, who will be able to see Roger Federer showing his magic on the tennis courts again. The legendary former tennis player will return to the courts to play a doubles exhibition match in Shanghai in exactly two months.

"Hello this is Roger, and I’m really happy to be returning to Qizhong Stadium in China for the Shanghai Masters,” he stated in the promotional video. “Shanghai has always been a special place for me, great fans, unforgettable memories and a real love for the game. I look forward to seeing you then, on October 10."

The exhibition match was named "Roger Federer and Friends" and is a Celebrity Doubles Match to be played with some local stars: Wu Lei (actor), Donnie Yen (martial artist and actor), and Zheng Jie—former world No. 3 in doubles and a champion of the Australian Open and Wimbledon in the same category—both with her compatriot Yan Zi in 2006.

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Federer won two titles at the Shanghai Masters: in 2014 by beating the Frenchman Gilles Simon and in 2017 by beating Rafael Nadal in the last final in which they faced each other in their rivalry.

Federer played the Tennis Masters Cup—now the ATP Finals—in the city of Shanghai in the same stadium for four consecutive years. He reached the final in 2005 but was defeated by the Argentine David Nalbandian, but he got revenge in the following editions. He won the title in 2006 (a victory over James Blake) and 2007 (a victory over David Ferrer), in both cases sweeping his rivals in the final.