"Great quote, you don’t always have to go out with a bang" - Tennis fans applaud Roger Federer for his nuanced take on 'losing his job'

Roger Federer's thoughts on retirement stuck with tennis fans, who lauded him for seeing the bright side of the situation. The Swiss great said that he felt like he had a 'fairy-tale ending' despite losing his final matches in singles and doubles, as well as his last ever team event.

The 20-time Grand Slam champion opened up about his feelings in the aftermath of a memorable farewell night at the Laver Cup last Friday. He spoke about the same during a recent interview with the New York Times, suggesting that he is content despite 'losing his job.'

"I think I feel complete," Federer said to Christopher Clarey of the New York Times. "I lost my last singles match. I lost my last doubles match. I lost my voice from screaming and supporting the team. I lost the last time as a team. I lost my job, but I’m very happy. I’m good. I’m really good."

While fairy-tale endings are usually associated with winning and signing off with a title, Federer believes he had one despite not winning his last matches, as his family, friends, and biggest rivals joined him at the time of his retirement.

"That’s the ironic part, is everybody thinks about happy fairy-tale endings, you know? And for me, actually it ended up being that but in a way that I never thought was going to happen," he added.

Tennis fans reacted to Federer's unique take, lauding him for taking his retirement and "losing his job" in such a positive light, and being happy despite not winning in the end.

"This is a great quote. You don’t always have to go out with a bang," one fan wrote on Twitter.

"Federer on endings…this changes everything we have internalised about perfect endings," another fan expressed.

Here are a few more reactions from the tennis world:

"I hope they can all play as long as possible" - Roger Federer on his 'Big 4' colleagues

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Roger Federer stated that he is happy about the fact that he is the first of the 'Big 4' comprising of himself, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, and Andy Murray, to retire from tennis. The 41-year-old feels that it is only fitting that he retires before the others as he is the most senior member of the iconic men's tennis era.

He also hopes to see the Nadal-Djokovic-Murray trio playing for at least a few more years.

"I’m happy I could go first, because I also am supposed to go first. So, that’s why it’s felt good. And I hope they can all play as long as possible and squeeze that lemon out. I really wish the best for them," he said on the same.

While Federer will no longer play on tour, he has confirmed that he will play exhibition matches in the future. Earlier this year, he had also expressed his intention to play the Swiss Indoors Basel, an ATP 500 event in his hometown.

However, during the build-up to the Laver Cup, he concluded that he will not be able to play beyond the London event due to his knee injury.