Global Courant
She has the royal touch, aka topspin! Catherine, the Princess of Wales, brought tennis legend Roger Federer out of retirement for a special occasion on the famous grass courts of Wimbledon.
Kate Middleton and Federer were joined by the Wimbledon ball boys and girls ahead of the Grand Slam tournament starting next week.
Middleton took on ballmaid while Federer served at the baseline and learned how to feed the ball to the Swiss athlete. When the ball was returned, Middleton caught it without bouncing it.
While Middleton was praised for her “fine catch”, Federer was quick to remind everyone why he was the tournament’s all-time male champion with eight singles titles. “Can you do that?” he cheekily asked ball girl Mollie from Middleton’s no-bounce catch.
Kate Middleton made a little Ball Girl mistake while practicing with the Wimbledon Ball Boys and Girls and Roger Federer. (Wimbledon/YouTube)
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“Oh yes, is that allowed?” asked the princess.
“They would make it in Australia, but not in Wimbledon,” Federer said, pointing to the difference between the Australian Open and Wimbledon.
“Ah, okay,” said Middleton, as Mollie explained that part of their responsibility as ball girls and boys was to bounce the ball before retrieving it.
Kate Middleton did a good job of demonstrating how to feed the ball to a player. (Handout/Thomas Lovelock – AELTC)
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When the two switched roles, Middleton joked with Federer, “All the tips on my serve at the same time would be really helpful.”
“The serve looks great,” replied the 20-time Grand Slam champion.
The two also played a bit of mixed doubles – on opposing teams. Middleton and Federer rallied, before Middleton hit a point winner that reached the line.
“I think it was on the line,” Federer laughed, slightly startled. “Astonishing.”
Kate Middleton stole a point from Roger Federer and his mixed doubles partner, much to the champion’s delight. (Handwout/Thomas Lovelock – AELTC)
While putting on their Wimbledon whites, Middleton and Federer also received a challenge on the grass courts – to perform the ball change – which involves the tennis ball rolling down the court from one person to the next in a straight line.
There was also indoor practice on hard court with the boys and girls who would work on the tournament.
Kate Middleton and Roger Federer practiced the ball girl and ball boy routine at Wimbledon ahead of the Grand Slam tournament next week. (Handout/Thomas Lovelock – AELTC)
“With the discipline and everything you’ve learned here, you can take it with you to so many other areas of your life. Things like confidence. And as you say… that feeling of pride in every field is such a big moment, really. So it’s (a) good choice,” Middleton told a few lucky ball boys and girls.
“To see the training and the dedication and the amount of time put into training and making sure this stuff goes right on the day, for the champions playing at Wimbledon,” Middleton later gestured to Federer, between a bigger group of kids, “It’s incredible to see it behind the scenes, so thank you. I really enjoyed it.”
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Wimbledon starts in London on July 3.
Caroline Thayer is an entertainment writer for Fox News Digital. Follow Caroline Thayer on Twitter at @carolinejthayer. Story tips can be sent to [email protected].
