Roger Federer Should Break One More Record Before Retiring, Says Analyst

Roger Federer remains on top of the tennis world, but Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic are within reach of overtaking the Swiss maestro when everything is all said and done.

With age and injuries siding against Federer, it seems that he is at the tail-end of his illustrious run. But before he entertains the thought of hanging it up, veteran tennis analyst Catherine Whitaker suggests that there is one feat that he has yet to check off on his bucket list--breaking Jimmy Connors’ record of 109 titles.

“The only really significant record that Federer can go for that the other two are very unlikely to get ... is the all-time titles currently held by Jimmy Connors,” Whitaker said, per Fox Sports.

It has become a neck-and-neck battle in the race to be recognized as the world's No.1 in the sport. Nadal has already caught up with Federer, tying the most major titles with 20. Meanwhile, Djokovic is currently the top seed in the Men's ATP Rankings.

Given that the two are still at the peak of their careers, they are in a position to win more Grand Slam titles than Federer.

However, Federer could up the ante by chasing a different milestone outside the total Grand Slam count.

While the 39-year-old is no longer perceived as the dominant figure he once was, it would make sense for the veteran star to pad his numbers with more ATP titles towards the latter part of his career.

“Federer’s got 103, Nadal 84 and Djokovic 77. It’s possible they could chase him down but I think pretty unlikely,” Whitaker stated. “Look, seven titles to overtake Jimmy Connors is absolutely not a given, but I think as he [Federer] nears it, given the stage of his career, that will be the one that we’ll see him hunt down.”

Though Federer has nothing more to prove and is assured of his place in the annals of tennis history, British sports broadcaster David Law believes that playing in much smaller but more frequent tournaments could help his case to be regarded as the sport's greatest of all time.

“He’s 40 next year—and he’s still able to contemplate winning titles. Maybe it [that record] will become more important to him,” Law mentioned.

Federer is currently nursing a knee injury. As he waits for his clearance to play again, Nadal and Djokovic are set to compete in this year’s ATP Finals from Nov. 15 to 22 at London’s O2 Arena.