It seems the most ‘happening’ moments in tennis at this year’s ATP World Tour Finals have all been off the court. Not withstanding Rafael Nadal’s biggest win of the season, the spotlight has been on things other than rallies and aces.
First was ‘towelgate’ — the seat and towel mix-up between Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic first caught media attention, when before the match, Federer walked on first and took the seat designated for Djokovic. Djokovic looked at the towel on the back of his chair, marked with Federer’s name and there was a news-moment-worthy bewilderment on his face.
Next Andy Murray lost the match but stole the limelight in his clash against Nadal. In a mid- match break, Murray calmly took out a pair of scissors and started trimming his hair. The video went viral within a few hours, with Andy getting rave reviews for his eccentric behaviour.
The most discussed accomplishment, so far, has been Roger Federer’s lazy-man beard, which is a conversation topic among tennis fans the world over. When asked about it after his ‘close-shave’ win over Kei Nishikori, Federer was quick to dismiss all the fuss saying it’s ‘just a look he is experimenting with’. He’ll take it off if his twin girls can’t stand it, or he doesn’t like what he sees in the mirror in a couple of day’s time.
Federer and the beard have advanced to Saturday’s semi finals at the year-end ATP event. May it be a hair-raising bit of excitement for all tennis fans.