Roger Federer is surprised by the fact that the former German great Boris Becker has taken over as the coach of his rival Novak Djokovic. But, at the same time, he believes that the appointment of former greats as coaches is actually a great thing for the game.

Djokovic is not the only top male tennis player who has appointed a former great as his coach in recent times. There are a few others as well who have done the same. Andy Murray has been playing under the guidance of Ivan Lendl for quite some time now, while, Federer himself has also included Stefan Edberg into his team.

The Swiss maestro answered a few questions of the reporters yesterday in Brisbane. When asked about the appointment of Boris Becker as the new coach of Novak Djokovic, he said, “Honestly speaking, I have been surprised by that. I hadn’t expected him to come in the field of coaching, but, I am glad to see that the greats are coming forward to help this generation of players. It’s really fantastic for the game.”
“I have always believed that the former greats should be involved in the game, not necessarily as coaches, but, in some way or the other.”

When asked about the guys whom he thinks would be very hard to defeat in the next season, Federer said, “As things stand at the moment, I would say its Rafa and Novak. They were in good form towards the end of the last season.”

The last season was one of the seasons which Federer would not like to remember for a long time. He struggled with his form right through the season. He would definitely like to have a better time in 2014.

Federer is currently at the 6th position in the world rankings.