Second seed Roger Federer got through his opening match at Melbourne Park unscathed, but it was his post-match interview that truly tested the five-time Australian Open.
Having answered a few on-court questions from John McEnroe, ‘special guest’ actor Will Ferrell stepped out onto Rod Laver Arena to really test the Swiss star.
“Roger, tonight you seemed like a gazelle out there on the court. Would you describe your game as a silky gazelle?” Ferrell asked.
“Maybe. Maybe not,” Federer responded. “Don’t they get eaten at the end?”
“Not if they’re fast enough,” said Ferrell.
“Quick question, Roger. You’re 36 years old. You seem ageless. Are you a witch or a vampire?”
All Federer looked like Tuesday evening against Aljaz Bedene was a defending champion, breaking at four of 13 opportunities and hitting 41 winners en route to the triumph.
The 36-year-old enjoyed the good fun with Ferrell as well.
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“Yeah, [it was] a surprise. I didn't know that was going to happen,” Federer told the press. “That was fun. I haven't met him a lot, to be honest. Actually, I saw him when I started the match, then I totally forgot he sat there. At the end, I realised he is still actually there. That's when he walked out onto centre court.
“It was nice to have Hollywood present here in Melbourne, in combination with tennis. People seemed to enjoy themselves. Great to see Johnny Mc[Enroe], too. Love the guy. It was a fun interview, I thought. I don't know about you guys, but I enjoyed it.”
The big question — who is the better interviewer: Ferrell or McEnroe?
“Totally different. Will Ferrell is a bit more intense, I thought. I was a bit scared,” Federer joked. “Stood there, didn't look at me, just was like focusing on the questions. I was a bit worried it was going to come my way. I'm happy I dodged some questions there.”
Now that Federer has escaped the interview, he can prepare for his second-round match on Thursday against German Jan-Lennard Struff, against whom he owns a 1-0 FedEx ATP Head2Head series leadreadfullarticle
