'Winning never gets boring' says Federer as he discusses things that keep him motivated

Roger Federer has revealed that there are a lot of things to keep him motivated, but nothing comes close to keeping the winning run going. The 36-year-old is one win away from securing the ATP World No 1 rank from Rafael Nadal, having already progressed into the quarter-finals of the Rotterdam Open.

The Swiss ace is looking forward to becoming the oldest World No 1 eclipsing Andre Agassi's record. Agassi was 33 years old when he became the top ranked player in 2003. In doing so he will extend his remarkable record of 302 weeks at the top of the table, more than any other player.

Federer managed to lift his 20th Grand Slam title in Melbourne, winning his sixth Australian Open by defeating Marin Cilic in the finals. The win means that he has stretched his lead over Nadal to four Grand Slams and is doing his part in establishing himself as the greatest tennis player of all time.

The duo have shared the five Grand Slams between them since the turn of 2017, with Federer winning two Australian Opens and Wimbledon, and Nadal keeping pace by taking the French Open and US Open. The Spaniard has already been deemed the favourite going into the French Open in May, with the 31-year-old looking for his 11th Roland Garros title.

However, despite all the success, the Swiss maestro is still motivated to go further and reach new heights, which for some, would be a difficult ask at this age. Federer insists that winning and playing in front of a packed crowd is something that will never pass him by, keeping him motivated for the journey ahead.

"I think, always wanting to improve as a player, you know, trying to find new ways to make it exciting for myself. Playing on a big stage, honestly, that's the fun part so that is very motivating in itself," Federer said, as quoted by the Express.

"Playing in front of fans and hearing the roar of the crowd, all that stuff, really gets you going. And then I can play for world number one or for titles, I mean, at the end of the day winning never gets boring, to be honest."

At the end of the Australian Open, Federer was only 155 points behind Nadal. With a run into the semi-finals in Rotterdam, he will have a lead of 25 points over the Spaniard.