Princess Kate shocked fans after taking on Roger Federer at Wimbledon last summer, but the legendary tennis champion was quick to correct her when he noticed she had made a mistake.
Princess Kate is known to be one of the most athletic royals, and last summer she showed off her prowess in some truly impressive fashion.
In June 2023, the Princess of Wales joined the legendary Roger Federer at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in Wimbledon and ended up beating the former world number one with a winner that seemed to take her by surprise. Impressed by her skills, Roger declared her shot to be “amazing”, much to the delight of fans, who tuned in to watch the mother-of-three highlight the “amazing work” of Wimbledon’s ball kids.
As talented as Kate is with a racket, Roger, 42, had some words of wisdom for her after realising she had made a mistake on court… With impressive quick thinking, Kate caught the ball with one hand after Federer’s teammate passed it to her. Ball girl Mollie commented that it was a “nice catch”, however, Federer questioned the move and asked: “Are you allowed to do that?”
Kate wondered out loud and replied: “Oh yeah, you’re allowed to do that? That’s a good point.” Federer then explained to Kate the different rules of the game, explaining that in Australia, players would “catch” the ball, but at Wimbledon that wasn’t the case. Mollie agreed: “Yeah, you’re not supposed to catch it. You’re supposed to let it bounce and then catch it, but a good catch.”
Kate has been playing sports since childhood and was particularly admired for her hockey skills during her school days at Marlborough College. In recent years, she has had to put her passion for tennis aside and instead concentrate on her three young children: Prince George, 10, Princess Charlotte, 9, and Prince Louis, 6.
During her visit to Bond Primary School in Mitcham, south London, where she observed training overseen by the Wimbledon Youth Tennis Initiative, Kate told pupils she now has less time to play tennis. She explained: “I love tennis, I think it’s a great sport. I was very sporty when I was little, and even less so now that I’ve got lots of babies!”
But it seems three young royals may have inherited Kate’s love of tennis. In a 2019 interview with the Mail Online, eight-time champion Roger revealed he had taught Prince George a lesson: “At that stage, it’s all about hitting the ball – he’s good enough. Same with my kids. I think I’ve got a little bit of an advantage because I’ve actually spent some time, you know, with him.” Noting that Kate has “always enjoyed” the sport, Roger went on to express hope that young George could “say the same thing in a few years.”
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