Lionel Messi pays warm tribute to Roger Federer: 'A genius, unique in history of tennis'

Following Roger Federer's decision to retire from professional tennis, several members of the sporting fraternity took to social media to pay tribute to one of the greatest players in the history of the sport. Seven-time Ballon d'Or winner Lionel Messi is the latest addition to the list. The Argentine international gave a warm tribute to the Swiss Maestro by referring to him as a genius and an example for any athlete.

Messi pays heartwarming tribute to Federer

After Roger Federer delivered his massive announcement to retire from competitive tennis, Lionel Messi took to his Instagram account and posted an image of the 41-year-old, with the caption, "A genius, unique in the history of tennis and an example for any athlete. All the best in your new stage, we will miss seeing you on the court making us enjoy, Roger Federer."

Roger Federer's legacy will remain forever

While Roger Federer will play his last tournament at the Laver Cup 2022 next week before retiring from the sport, the legacy he has left in tennis will last forever. With 20 Grand Slam titles and several other historic records in his name, the Swiss Maestro will be remembered as one of the greatest that ever graced the sport.

Among all the records that the 41-year-old holds, the one that stands out most is the consecutive number of weeks he held the world number one ranking. Federer was at the top of the ATP singles rankings for a staggering 237 consecutive weeks from February 2, 2004, to August 10, 2008.

During this time, he also scripted the record for reaching the most number of consecutive Grand Slam finals. Federer reached a whopping 10 finals in a row from 2005 to 2007, winning three Wimbledon, three US Open and two Australian Open titles during this remarkable run.

Federer's retirement will also bring an end to a historic era, one in which the Swiss Maestro shared iconic rivalries with arch-rivals Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic. The three often pushed each other to the limit and dominated the sport for almost two decades. During this time, Federer won 20 men's singles Grand Slams, a record that was matched by Nadal (22) first and then by Djokovic (21).