Roger Federer sent brutal Laver Cup messages as two stars withdraw from tournament

The Laver Cup suffered a major blow, with top Team World stars Ben Shelton and Tommy Paul pulling out of the tournament weeks before it gets underway in San Francisco. The Ryder Cup-style tournament was co-created by Roger Federer and his agent, Tony Godsick, to honour tennis legend Rod Laver.

In earlier editions of the tournament, Federer would team up alongside his biggest rivals, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic, to represent Team Europe. But star power has been harder to come by in recent years, and fans have made their feelings known after Shelton and Paul's replacements were announced.

After Shelton and Paul picked up injuries at the US Open, they both pulled out of the upcoming Laver Cup. Instead, world No. 32 Alex Michelsen will make his Laver Cup debut in two weeks.

Reilly Opelka, currently ranked No. 67, is set to return to Team World for the first time since 2021. They join Taylor Fritz, Frances Tiafoe, Francisco Cerundolo, and tournament debutant Joao Fonseca.

Meanwhile, on Team Europe, world No. 2 Carlos Alcaraz is back in action for the second year running. He'll join forces with Alexander Zverev, Holger Rune, Casper Ruud, Jakub Mensik and Flavio Cobolli.

Team Europe have won the Laver Cup five times, while Team World clinched victory in 2022 and 2023. But some fans believe the event has run its course, with the European side appearing much stronger.

"Too damn boring now. Easy one-sided victory for team Europe," @anas081081 tweeted.

@deepblue1 added: "It was nice federer wanted to honor Rocket through this but its outlived its utility."

Others suggested the Laver Cup was losing its importance, as @myunforcedera wrote: "Omg Laver Cup... quickly nosediving into obscurity," and @elli_twit_ said: "Who even cares about laver cup anymore anyways."

One user, @sinnerista, brutally joked: "Guys be very careful out there. I had 2 Laver Cup tickets inside my car and someone broke in and left 4 more."

The Laver Cup has already had a shake-up for 2025. Since its inception, Bjorn Borg had been the Team Europe captain, and Tomas Enqvist was his vice captain, while John McEnroe and Patrick McEnroe led Team World.

But they stepped down after the 2024 edition of the tournament, and new faces will lead the squads in San Francisco later this month.

Yannick Noah is the new Team Europe captain, and Tim Henman is the vice. Over on Team World, Andre Agassi will work with Pat Rafter.

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