A busy week that will soon welcome the beginning of the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells began with a bang on Monday night at the SAP Center in San Jose, Calif. That is where Roger Federer hosted the Match for Africa 5, a charity exhibition for the Roger Federer Foundation–this time with Jack Sock plus special guests Bill Gates and Savannah Guthrie.
It started with a doubles match featuring Federer and Gates (Microsoft founder and chairman) facing Sock (currently the United States’ No. 1 player) and Guthrie (host of NBC’s Today Show). Federer and Gates took the set 6-3 for their second straight doubles win in the Match for Africa. They beat John Isner and Pearl Jam drummer Mike McCready in last year’s Match for Africa 4 in Seattle, Wash.Image may be NSFW.
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“I think I’m good at picking partners,” Gates joked during the on-court interview.
The nightcap featured a singles match between Federer and Sock, which the top-ranked Swiss won 7-6(9), 6-4. It included a fair share of impressive shots but for the most part–as expected–was low on seriousness and high on shenanigans. For example, it ended when Sock hit between-the-legs shot into the net down match point.
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Most importantly, the Match for Africa 5 raised $2.5 million for Federer’s foundation.
“I don’t use this as a preparation for [Indian Wells],” Federer noted. “I see it very isolated as just doing good. We just raised over $10 million, all the Matches for Africa that we did. That’s more than $2 million on average that we’ve done, which is phenomenal. That’s what I see. This is about lighting it up for the crowd and making them leave the arena really happy.
“It was a good [crowd],” the 36-year-old added, referencing the 15,000 who packed into the SAP Center. “I really enjoyed myself. The crowd’s great because you’re always a bit anxious to find out if they’re happy to see you. Are they excited about tennis? What is it going to be like? It’s not like Wimbledon where you know how the crowd is going to be. I felt they were wonderful. I had a great time.”
“This match for Africa is something extraordinary,” Sock concluded.
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