The Rafa-Roger show behind the mike

They are known to bring the house down in their on-court face-offs, but tennis icons Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal showed that they could do exactly the same with just a mike in front of them.

Addressing a joint press conference at the end of the International Premier Tennis League’s India leg, the two contemporary legends of the game were jovial and sharp-witted, sending down some verbal aces while engaging in light-hearted banter. Sitting between the two during the interaction was IPTL founder Mahesh Bhupathi, who had a good time laughing along with the media. Federer was the more vocal of the two but when it came to answering a question on pressure, he stumped Nadal by passing it on to him.

“Go ahead Rafa, I am too nervous sitting here so I prefer Rafa to break the ice,” Federer said, leaving Nadal wide-eyed in surprise. “Well! I am always so cold talking in English,” was a grinning Nadal’s hurriedly-thought response to which, Federer said, “It’s such a joy for me to listen to it.” The playful exchange was met with more laughter and some applause as well before Nadal brought some order back by speaking about how competitive the two are no matter which part of the world they are playing.