For King Federer, it is not just ‘Love Game Set and Match’ on the court but also in the kitchen. Why KITCHEN, you may ask. It is so because the Open Era’s all-time greatest player, Roger Federer displayed his culinary art in an advertisement for Barilla Group, the largest pasta company in the world. The tennis superstar showcased his cooking skills for the first time and that too in the kitchen of Michelin-starred Italian chef, Davide Oldani. The TVC dropped on December 28 by the Italian company as Federer is busy prepping before the 2018 Australian Open starting on January 15.

We have seen Federer hit the most amazing shots, be it the spectacular forehand or the backhand slice. But in the new Barilla ad, a sharp knife replaces the tennis racquet in the 36-year-old’s hand. The commercial begins with the star player making his way into Oldani’s kitchen carrying his tennis kitbag bearing the iconic RF initials. Federer pulls out a packet of Barilla pasta and begins his cooking journey.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W7rOLRlqhuM

From slicing cherry tomatoes to garnishing the pasta with a basil leaf, the tennis superstar seems to have mastered the art of cooking. However, as most of the cooking was done by the celebrated chef, Roger has to be content being a doubles partner than cook single-handedly. In order to showcase his strong cookery game, the tennis master tweeted the link of video with the caption – “My first day cooking. See how I did…” We think Roger Federer passed the kitchen test with flying colours.

Coming back to his preparations for the upcoming Australian Open, the defending champion will kick off the season in Perth with Hopman Cup. He is representing Switzerland. After the fantabulous last season, a lot of expectations is riding on the 19-time Grand Slam champion. But Federer is keeping it practical and setting realistic goals for the year.

He was quoted saying, ‘Now expectations are higher but at the same time, I try to remind myself just don’t think it’s normal and realistic to aim for the same things I did this year in 2017. ‘I’ve got to try and keep it cool. Try my best and see what happens but the preparation’s been good so far. We’ll see how things go.’ Guess, fans have to wait and watch for Federer's magic to unleash in the new season.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Dec 28, 2017 09:43 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).