Roger Federer forgets ID, denied entry into men's locker room
Ace tennis player Roger Federer faced an embarrassment today after he was denied entry into the men's changing room as he had forgotten to bring his official accreditation during the ongoing Australian Open. However, the 37-year-old Grand Slam champion was patient enough to wait for a team member to come and identify that the man standing there was indeed 'Roger Federer'. Here's what happened.
Coach Ivan Ljubicic helps Federer gain entry into room
A video of the security guard stopping Federer from entering the room has gone viral on social media. The video shows the Swiss champion approaching the room without his ID pass and soon realizing his mistake. He can be seen waiting for someone to help get access. His coach Ivan Ljubicic turns up, shows the ID and helps Federer gain entry into the room.
Incident underlines golden mandate: Rules are rules!
Roger that! Netizens laud guard for doing his job correctly
We can't help but admire the austerity of the guard denying entry to the champion. Similarly, fans and tennis-fraternity were amused by the video and lauded the guard as well as Federer for being graceful. One netizen wrote, "Hahahaa man's gotta do his job." "Roger, ever the gentleman. No fuss, no carry on. That's why he is an ornament to the game," another wrote.
Meanwhile, Federer will be playing against Stefanos Tsitsipas tomorrow
Notably, as per the rules, all the players, coaches, officials, members of the media are required to carry their Photo IDs, which contain all the required information. A bar code is also put on the pass for scanning at various security checkpoints. Meanwhile, Federer will be playing against Greece's Stefanos Tsitsipas tomorrow at the Rod Laver Arena in the Round of 16.
Earlier, Maria Sharapova was asked to retrieve ID from bag
However, Federer is not the only high-profile player who was denied entry like that during the ongoing Grand Slam. On January 16, Russian champion Maria Sharapova was stopped in a corridor and was asked to retrieve her ID from her bag to prove her identity.
