Roger Federer receives a standing ovation from Centre Court crowd as eight-time Wimbledon champion – sat alongside the Princess of Wales – returns to SW19 for first time since retiring
It was an unmissable moment to celebrate the greatest player to ever grace the hallowed turf of Centre Court and Roger Federer’s arrival drew the kind of visceral roar of appreciation rarely seen before finals weekend – but lazy BBC coverage missed every second.
It continued a week of gaffes for the Beeb after they also failed to show the first two games of British No 1 Katie Boulter’s match and got top seed Carlos Alcaraz’s age wrong.
As Boulter, cover star of Tatler and many newspapers, took to court, BBC were showing a pre-recorded interview with her instead.
Fans have also decried the lack of genuine tennis experts in their mainstream coverage, with cricket presenter Isa Guha also making a mistake on the age of 23-time Grand Slam winner and favourite Novak Djokovic on Monday.
As Federer took to the royal box, BBC were instead showing a news bulletin on BBC One and Alcaraz’s match on BBC Two.
Roger Federer (right) waved to the crowd as he was given a standing ovation by Centre Court
Princess of Wales (left) was alongside the Swiss tennis legend in the Royal Box on Tuesday
Federer shared a kiss wiht his wife Mirka on what was his first return to SW19 since retiring
No one lucky enough to have tickets for Centre Court missed the ceremony, though, as eight-time Wimbledon winner Federer and wife Mirka joined the Princess of Wales in a royal box also populated by former Prime Minister David Cameron and Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe.
The 41-year-old, who retired last year, jetted in from Zurich after he performed on stage at a Coldplay gig on Sunday and then joined a sky full of stars at SW19 and received a three-minute applause from starstruck spectators.
The All England Club celebrated his unmatched eight gentlemen’s singles titles here with a special video montage of his best moments from 2013 to 2021, featuring input from former opponents.
Sporting a plush cream suit and sunglasses, Federer looked on intently as defending champion Elena Rybakina opened the day’s play – though Kate Middleton and his wife chatted across him for most of a tough three-set start to a title defence for the Kazakh player.
It comes a year after Federer drew the loudest cheer from a field of more than 20 previous winners who lined up on the hallowed green grass to mark 100 years of Centre Court.
The All England Club plan to hold a similar ceremony for Serena Williams when she is able to travel to London.
The seven-time singles champion, who like Federer retired last year, is currently pregnant.
Federer’s parents Robert and Lynette were also present to see their son welcomed back
Federer cut a very suave figure in his beige suit as he donned sunglasses despite drizzly rain
Federer (pictured in 2006) is an eight-time Wimbledon winner and one of the all-time greats