Watch: Federer Reveals Fountain of Youth

Roger Federer reveals recalling his younger years—and facing NextGen opposition—has recharged him in the latter stages of his career. The 37-year-old Swiss, who concedes “as a tennis player, I’m definitely on the older side,” points out advancing age provides an experience edge. More: Federer Reveals Hand Injury “In tennis terms, I am on the older side, no doubt about it,” Federer told CGTN’s Wang Dong. “Average retirement age, I guess is 32, 33-years-old, maybe, if that, and I’m 37 so I understand if they call me old. “In life, I’m still young. As a tennis player, I’m definitely on the older side and I have to get used to it to be quite honest.” The 20-time Grand Slam champion says recalling the rush he felt as a young player facing top-ranked champions like Pete Sampras, Andre Agassi and Carlos Moya, infuses him with a fresher mindset facing NextGen stars. “Also playing the next generation of players that’s coming up, it’s just a different feel,” Federer said. “Because you have to imagine when I came on the tour, back in 2002 when I came to Shanghai, I’m playing with the likes of Agassi and sharing the locker room with Carlos Moya, Tim Henman and Pete Sampras. And those are the guys I knew from TV, right? “And then all of a sudden well now the players know me from TV and they’re playing against me. So you have to switch your mind around a little bit and appreciate that, that the young generation is knocking on the door and is really excited to play against you.”