What Roger Federer said when asked if he was laughing at Stan Wawrinka crying after their 2017 Indian Wells final

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Roger Federer will have very fond memories of Indian Wells, having won the iconic tournament a stunning five times.

Novak Djokovic has five Indian Wells titles as well, with his most recent coming in 2016, a year before the final title of Federer.

Carlos Alcaraz can emulate both Djokovic and Federer this month, with the Spaniard chasing a third successive title at Indian Wells 2025.

Alcaraz is the second seed at Indian Wells, with Djokovic the sixth seed at the ATP Masters 1000 tournament.

The Serbian legend can secure a record sixth title this month in California, where qualifying is already underway.

Roger Federer said fans want to see emotional players after 2017 Indian Wells win

But Federer will be keen to keep that joint record in place, having lost back-to-back finals in 2018 and 2019 after his 2017 win.

Stan Wawrinka was his final victim that year, with Federer asked in his winning press conference to discuss the emotional post-match scenes between the pair.

“Yeah, I mean, look, sports is emotional,” he said. “So when you win or when you lose, sometimes it’s stronger than you.

READ MORE: Two-time Grand Slam champion officially withdraws from Indian Wells with injury

“I like to see it. I think fans like to see it, too, seeing that players actually care a lot about winning and losing.

“At the same time, I think Stan can be very proud of his efforts here and the start to the year. And the tournament he played here was great for him.

“He’s always struggled in the past in the desert. And then, for me, the dream run continues. The fairytale of the comeback that I have already shown in Australia.

“Again, I’m not as surprised as I was in Australia, but still this comes as a big, big surprise to me, nevertheless, to win here again and beating the players that I did and the way I did.

“I mean, couldn’t be more happy. It’s an absolute, huge start to the year for me. Yeah, last year didn’t win any titles.

“I don’t think I was in any finals except maybe Brisbane last year. The change is dramatic, and it feels great.”

Roger Federer tried to cheer up Stan Wawrinka after 2017 Indian Wells final

Federer was the ninth seed at Indian Wells 2017, and even found himself in the same section of the draw as fifth seed Rafael Nadal.

But the Swiss legend beat the Spaniard in the fourth round, having previously knocked out Stephane Robert and Steve Johnson.

READ MORE: Indian Wells tournament director releases official statement after Venus Williams publicly rejects wildcard to play

Nick Kyrgios then withdrew from their quarter-final, with Federer beating Jack Sock in the semi-finals to set up an all-Swiss final.

Wawrinka was the third seed at Indian Wells, but Federer battled hard to a 6-4, 7-5 victory to secure his 90th ATP title.

Asked if he was really laughing when Wawrinka was crying during the presentation, Federer replied: “Well, I was trying to actually cheer him up. He knows that. I was trying, when he looked at me, not to give him the sad face.

“I was looking at him, going, ‘You’ll be fine’, and gave him a laugh, say, maybe gets his mind off it. I guess I achieved that.”