Roger Federer returns to Australian Open court vs Casper Ruud as Djokovic watches from sidelines

The “Happy Slam” Australian Open turned super happy for Roger Federer fans as the Swiss maestro turned the clock back at the Rod Laver Arena on Friday with an exhibition match. Ahead of the first Grand Slam in 2026, the 44-year-old Federer played a practice match against world No 12 Casper Ruud.

Federer, who won the Australian Open six times in his career and the last time in 2018, defeated the 27-year-old Ruud 7-2 in a friendly tie-break match. This was the first time in six years that Federer was playing at the Rod Laver Arena and a massive crowd turned out to watch the 20-time Grand Slam winner.

Federer’s last Australian Open appearance was in 2020 when he lost to Novak Djokovic in the semi-finals. The Serbian great Djokovic was also in attendance, watching Federer play some signature backhand shots on Friday.

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Novak Djokovic watching Roger Federer practice on Rod Laver Arena.#AusOpen pic.twitter.com/UUDGRQcfhu

— José Morgado (@josemorgado) January 16, 2026

The practice match against Ruud was planned for Federer to prepare for the Australian Open’s first opening ceremony, which will take place on Saturday. Besides Federer, the AO opening ceremony would also involve Andre Agassi, Patrick Rafter and Lleyton Hewitt.

Federer mesmerises fans with practice match in Melbourne

During the courtside interview, Federer shared how it felt to play at Rod Laver Arena after so many years.

“I’m just loving Melbourne for what it is… And it’s just nice to come back down here after so many years and just have fun. Family came, my parents came too, so it’s a trip down memory lane, and a bit of nostalgia for us. Some great moments, great years came here,” he said.

Roger Federer v Casper Ruud: AO 2026 Edition 😮‍💨

Enjoy the full tiebreak from today's practice on Rod Laver Arena 👇 pic.twitter.com/7rxOkCv2El

— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) January 16, 2026

Still got it and still making it look easy, simply Roger Federer ✨#AO26 pic.twitter.com/JNrfhC0zJy

— Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) January 16, 2026

Meanwhile, world No 1 Carlos Alcaraz is hoping to complete a career Grand Slam at the Australian Open, while Sinner is gunning for a third consecutive title in Melbourne.

Ahead of his practice match, Federer also spoke about the ‘SinCaraz’ rivalry and how they are set to dominate tennis for a long time.

“The rivalry with Alcaraz and Sinner is a great one. They play incredible tennis. I think that French Open final was unreal. I think the game, not that it needed it, but it was great that we had it. I feel like for a second, for a moment, the world stood still in the sporting world and watched towards Paris what was going on in that epic fifth set because it could have ended much, much sooner, obviously, for Jannik,” Federer said while talking about Alcaraz’s five-set win over Sinner at Roland Garros in 2025 when the Spaniard saved three championship points in the third set.

“Then all of a sudden it ended up in this most crazy fashion. Maybe one of the greatest games we’ve ever had in our sport. It’s good we still live off that momentum. Then they backed it up by playing against each other in all those other finals. Everybody is trying to keep up, and they’re trying to pull away. What we’ve seen in terms of their progression in the last years, it’s been wonderful. I practised with those guys a little bit. They’re incredible ball strikers. There’s obviously more to come,” he added.