Federer's India visit creates Twitter storm

The 17-time Grand Slam champion asked fans to 'photoshop' his images in Indian locations and was flooded with tweets

First there was despair, then jubilation. Rafael Nadal's withdrawal from International Premier Tennis League due to a wrist injury was bad news for the Indian tennis fan. However, within hours the  organizers had a replacement who matched the Spaniard's stature and maybe is a tad more popular than the 14 time Grand Slam winner. Enter 17 time grand slam winner, Roger Federer. 

 

Federer has replaced Rafael Nadal who had backed out to hue health reasons. 

 

“We regret to announce that due to health reasons, #RafaelNadal will not be playing in the #IPTL. We're rooting for you, #GetWellSoonRafa!”, the official account of the IPTL tweeted. 

 

Following the announcement of Fedex playing for the Indian Aces, the Indian franchise of the league, social media has been abuzz with excitement as classic tennis fans are ecstatic about seeing him play in New Delhi.

 

The Swiss maestro, who is new to the world of social media, tweeted about his excitement about coming to India and gave rise to a frenzy in the India chapter of popular micro-blogging site. .

Federer asked his fans in India to 'photoshop' him on various Indian location backgrounds and advice him on places he must visit. He has been re-tweeting the best ones with the hashtag #PhotoshopRF. 

Best of #PhotoshopRF

 

Federer will be seen playing in the capital between December 6-8.  The tournament also features other Grand Slam winners like Pete Sampras, Andre Aggasi, Novak Djokovic , Serena Williams, Ana Ivanovic, and Lleyton Hewitt. 

 

The league which is the brain child of Indian tennis star Mahesh Bhupathi is set to kick off on November 28 in Manila and will be played in Dubai, Singapore, Manila and New Delhi between November and December.

First published on September 23, 2014  5:30 pm