Roger Federer leads the list of nominees announced on Wednesday for the International Tennis Hall of Fame’s class of 2026. He was the first man to win 20 Grand Slam Singles titles and led in a era of unprecedented greatness with younger rivals Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic.
With a great Forehand and Serve, an attacking, all-Court style and footwork that makes everything seem to be effortless, Federer won 103 trophies and 1,251 games in singles, Totals surpassed among men only by Jimmy Connors in the open era, which started in 1968.
Federer finished five seasons at number 1 in the ATP ranking, spent a record of 237 consecutive weeks at that location, led Switzerland to the Davis Cup title 2014 and worked with Stan Wawrinka to claim a double gold medal during the 2008 Olympic Games.
At the height of his powers, Federer reached a record 10 consecutive Grand Slam -final from 2005 to 2007, with eight titles in that period. He extended that dominance by making 18 major finals in 2010. There were also stripes of 36 quarter -final in a row and 23 straight semi -finals.
Federer, an ambassador for the game who often spoke German in English, French and Swiss on news conferences, played his last game in Wimbledon in 2021. He was then shy of 40 for a month.
His pension announcement only came the following year, and he said goodbye to an appearance alongside Nadal in Doubles at De Laver Cup, an event that has established his management company.
Federer is accompanied by the vote in the category players of the hall by two-time large singles champion Svetlana Kuznetsova and 2009 US Open winner Juan Martin del Potro. There are two nominees in the Contributions category: TV broadcaster Mary Carillo and manager Marshall Happer.
The Inductes will be announced in November.
Federer is one of the eight men with at least one singles trophy of each of the four most important events of the sport, which won eight in Wimbledon, six on the Australian Open, five at the US Open and one on the French open. He completed the Grand Slam career at Roland-Garros in 2009.
His first major championship arrived in the All England Club in 2003 and he broke the then record of Pete Sampras for a man of 14 slam titles by winning Wimbledon in 2009, and defeated Andy Roddick 16-14 in the fifth set of the final.
In the end, Federer was overtaken in the Grand Slam classification by Nadal, who retired last year at the age of 38, and Djokovic, who is still active at 38 with 24.
“I always say that it is great to be part of that selective group,” Federer told The Associated Press in 2021. “How can you compare it? What is better? To win when you are old or if you are young? I have no idea, do you know. Is it better to win on clay or grass?
Federer’s Run of five consecutive US Opens-Since then no man has won two in a row-in the 2009 final with a loss of five set for Del Potro. At the time, Del Potro was not completely 21 and it seemed destined for an elite career, thanks in part to his flowering forehand, but a series of wrist and knee injuries derailed the 6-foot-6 Argentinian.
He ended with 22 titles on tour level and a career-high ranking of No. 3 while reaching another Grand Slam final, finished as the second place of Djokovic at the US Open 2018. Del Potro earned a silver medal at the Rio de Janeiro 2016 Olympic Games that year. His last performance at a big tournament was a fourth round run on the French Open 2019.
Kuznetsova won big trophies in Singles at the US Open 2004 and 2009 French Open and in Doubles at the Australian Open in 2005 and 2012. She received number 2 in the WTA ranking in Singles and No. 3 in Doubles and was part of three championships with Russia in the competition that is now known. Kuznetsova won 18 events at Tour level in Singles and 16 in double.
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