Federer won 20 Grand Slam titles during his time as a professional, spent 310 weeks as world number one, and won Wimbledon a record eight times.

The Swiss enjoyed legendary rivalries with the likes of Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic, both of whom he shared the court with on many occasions.

Federer’s final match came at the 2022 Laver Cup, a competition which he helped create, as he played alongside rival and friend Nadal, in a loss to the American duo of Frances Tiafoe and Jack Sock.

However, his last singles match came one year prior, as he fell to a now eight-time ATP Tour champion, at the tournament he dominated for much of his career.

Hubert Hurkacz: The man who beat Roger Federer in his last match at Wimbledon

Having played just one of the previous four Grand Slam tournaments, expectations weren’t too high for Federer as he entered Wimbledon in 2021, still struggling with his knee.

The 43-year-old underwent numerous surgeries on his right knee during the latter stages of his career, which never quite saw him return to full fitness.

Regardless, Federer battled his way through the opening rounds at SW19, beating Adrian Mannarino, Richard Gasquet, Cameron Norrie, and Lorenzo Sonego, to qualify for the quarter-finals.

It was the 18th time Federer had reached the quarter-final stage of Wimbledon, but unlike so many times before, this was as far as he would go.

Hubert Hurkacz awaited Federer, a big serving Pole, who was enjoying the best year of his career to date.

The 27-year-old had won his second-ever ATP title in Delray Beach earlier in the year, before he took home a maiden Masters 1000 title in Miami against future world number-one Jannik Sinner.

In good form, that quickly translated as Hurkacz took the first set against the Swiss legend 6-3.

In true Federer fashion, he battled back in the second set, taking things to a tiebreaker, a golden opportunity for him to level things up.

It wasn’t to be, however, as Federer made several uncharacteristic errors in the tiebreak as Hurkacz clinched the second set 7-6 (7-4).

What happened in the third set, happened to Federer just three times during his entire career, as Hurkacz beat him 6-0, sending him out of Wimbledon in convincing fashion.

It wasn’t known at the time, but this would be Federer’s final singles match at Wimbledon, and in tennis altogether.

Following the match, Hurkacz was grateful to have played one of the sport’s greatest ever players at Wimbledon.

“I don’t know what to say, it’s super special for me,” he said.

“I’ve been playing on this special court against Roger [Federer], it’s like a dream come true to play him.

“The special things that he has done here throughout his whole career, it’s a dream come true.”

With his win in the quarter-finals, Hurkacz qualified for the last four of a Major for the first time in his career before losing to Matteo Berrettini in the semis.

The 27-year-old is yet to return to the semi-finals of a Grand Slam, another reason that his win over Federer will live long in the memory.

What happened to Hubert Hurkacz after beating Roger Federer at Wimbledon?

After scoring the biggest win of his career at Wimbledon, Hurkacz established himself as a top-ten talent on the ATP Tour.

The Pole finished the year ninth, tenth, and ninth again from 2021-2023, before regressing slightly in 2024 as he currently sits ranked 16th in the world.

Having won three titles before announcing himself on the world stage against Federer three years ago, the 27-year-old has since added to his trophy cabinet on numerous occasions.

In October 2023, Hurkacz joined a select group of active ATP stars with multiple Masters 1000 titles, after winning in Shanghai.

Despite Hurkacz winning a title in Estoril earlier this year, performances did somewhat disappoint, however, and the Pole decided to make a big change ahead of 2025.

Hurkacz recently announced his new coaching team, which will see eight-time Grand Slam winner Ivan Lendl, and former Olympic Gold medallist Nicolas Massu link up with the Pole.

Both have achieved Major success as a coach, with Lendl picking up three Grand Slam titles with Andy Murray, and Massu working alongside Dominic Thiem to win the 2020 US Open.

Hurkacz will be hoping that the wealth of experience he now has alongside him will propel him to big things in the new year.

The Pole will return to action for the United Cup, which begins on December 27.

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