International sports, tennis
Zurich, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) - Roger Federer won his “Match for Africa” exhibition game against Rafa Nadal, 21 December in Zurich, after losing the first set. The Swiss star, currently ranked second after Nadal by the ATP, won 4-6, 6-3, 6-3. Neither player was quite at the top of his game after taking a few weeks out for the annual pause before the lead-up to the 2011 Australian Open. The game was played in good spirit, but without the normally tense rivalry, in front of a sellout crowd in Zurich. The sponsors were in evidence, Credit Suisse promising a million francs a year for a decade to the Roger Federer Foundation, Nespresso dominating the television ads, while Nike sponsored the clothing for both the players. Unusually, they wore their watches during the game: Rolex for Federer while Nadal kept his half million dollar Richard Mille watch on after losing one at the Toronto tournament earlier this year.
The second leg of the match will be played on a clay court in Madrid, 22 December, with the proceeds going to Fundacion Rafael Nadal which helps children in need.
Melbourne, Australia (GenevaLunch) - Swiss world number one tennis player Roger Federer added a fourth Australian Open to his collection, and a record 16th Grand Slam singles title to his trophy cabinet as he crushed Andy Murray 6-3, 6-4, 7-6 (13-11.) Federer quickly took control as he broke Murray’s first service game but the Scot battled back to win the next three games.
The Swiss star then gave a masterful demonstration to take the first two sets. The third set was tightly contested as Murray took advantage of a few weak points to break Federer’s serve and lead 5-2 but he handed back the break and the set went to a tie-break. A tiring Murray failed to convert four set points and eventually lost the tie-break 13-11 to end the match.
Etas project in Zimbabwe: the Roger Federer Foundation is spending some CHF80,000 a year on the project to improve the infrastructure of 8 schools, as well as investing in teacher training and the quality of education for about 2,000 children in the Matopo region.
Basel and Zurich, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – Roger Federer has signed a 10-year contract with Swiss bank Credit Suisse, for an undisclosed sum, the bank announced Monday 16 November. Federer, on his web site, notes that “As part of the partnership agreement, Credit Suisse will make a significant annual contribution to the Roger Federer Foundation, which is dedicated to helping disadvantaged children and to promoting education, sports and play, particularly in Africa.” The foundation was inspired by Federer’s South African mother and currently states on its web site that its capital is CHF4 million.
The bank’s CEO, Brady Dougan, did not stint in his enthusiastic praise of the Swiss tennis star:
