WATCH: Stan Wawrinka abuses Roger Federer after losing in the final at Indian Wells
Stan Wawrinka, who lost to Roger Federer in the final of the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells, called his countryman an 'asshole’ when he saw him laughing during his post-match speech. Federer, considered the great player of all time, brushed it aside, saying he takes it as a compliment.
Federer won his fifth BNP Paribas Open title on Sunday, defeating close friend Wawrinka 6-4, 7-5 for his 90th ATP Tour crown and 25th World Tour Masters 1000 tournament.
After the match, when Wawrinka was giving an emotional speech to the crowd in the post-match presentation, Federer sat courtside laughing.
"I would like to congratulate Roger," Wawrinka said, looking towards Federer, "He's laughing. He's an asshole, but it's OK."
And when Federer’s turn came, he said that he was only trying to cheer up Wawrinka.
"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," Federer said.
On being asked in the press conference that if it was the first time in his life that he had been called the expletive, the 18-time Grand Slam champion said he'd heard it "many, many times before" in a joking way.
"That's why I take it as a compliment," he said, smiling.
"There's not always cameras around, so I get called that sometimes. Quite often, actually. On the court is the first time, but it felt good," he further added.
Stan Wawrinka cries, jokingly calls Roger Federer an "a—hole” after beating him at Indian Wells pic.twitter.com/1bBgEscDDj
— Sports Illustrated (@SInow) March 20, 2017