MELBOURNE, Australia -- He's 82 years old now, still stylish with silver hair and those impossibly high cheekbones. His posture, frankly, is exceptional.
There's a soft cast on his right hand -- a tennis injury?
"Oh, no," Ken Rosewall says, laughing. "Had a fall on the golf course."
He's wearing a green blazer and a violet tie, standing in the media center in Rod Laver Arena, named after his good friend and colleague. About four miles away, at the Kooyong Lawn Tennis Club, he won the 1953 Australian Open as an 18-year-old. Later, the Aussie will be among the 24 legends who welcome the International Tennis Hall of Fame's Class of 2017 that includes Kim Clijsters and Andy Roddick.
Like so many fans of Roger Federer, Rosewall has keenly followed the Swiss champion's unlikely progress through the draw at this Australian Open. When he watches Federer, now 35, he sees a little something of himself.
Rosewall is one of the few people on earth who truly understand what it must feel like to be Fed.
When Federer defeated Stan Wawrinka in the semifinals, he became the oldest men's Grand Slam finalist in 43 years -- going back to when Rosewall reached the 1974 US Open final at the age of 39.
If Federer manages to win the tournament Sunday, he will become the fourth-oldest man to take home a major trophy.
The only man to do better is the guy in the green jacket.
Rosewall won four major titles in four years, but turned professional after the 1956 season. For 11 years, from 1957 to '67, he and his fellow pros were excluded from the Grand Slams, which allowed only amateurs until the start of the Open era in 1968.
"I thought I was lucky to be playing well enough when Open tennis happened [in 1968]," Rosewall said. "I was already 33, old by tennis-playing standards. So that kind of kept me going, the incentive to keep playing."
Rosewall said he didn't feel old.
"Not at that time," he said. "I mean, the way I played tennis and the way tennis was played in those days, it was probably less physically tiring. Certainly, the matches were never as long. We had wooden rackets with small heads. Playing more on grass courts than the hard courts, certainly it was easier on your body.
"On the other hand, it's more about the way you move."
And to underline his point, he did a subtle swivel of the hips.
The old timers will tell you that Rosewall might have been the best mover before Federer. He was only 5-foot-7, 148 pounds -- his buddies facetiously called him "Muscles" -- but he had pristine footwork and moved with incredible grace.
At the age of 35 he won the 1970 US Open, defeating fellow Aussie Tony Roche in four sets, making Rosewall the oldest male winner of a Grand Slam in the Open era.
Then he outdid himself, winning the 1971 Australian Open at the age of 36, defeating Arthur Ashe in the final. And against great odds, there was one more Slam in him: the 1972 Aussie Open, where, at 37, he beat Mal Anderson. Nearly three years later, he reached the final at both Wimbledon and the US Open -- at the age of 39.
"I was in my 40th year," Rosewall said proudly, "so, something to remember."
Federer missed six months recovering from a knee injury that required the first major surgery of his career. His ability to stay reasonably healthy, Rosewall said, is what allows him to continue at such a high level. And one of the reasons for his good health is the natural way he moves around the court.
"I mean, that's been the main part of his game," Rosewall said. "His movement, understanding the game, in addition to his natural ability. His record just speaks for itself, like when you're talking about Rod [Laver] and what he did when he was at the top."
Andre Agassi was 35 when he played Federer, and lost, in the 2005 US Open final. He thinks Federer is capable of winning his 18th career major.
"Roger has gotten me to stop predicting anything," Agassi said last week. "Because I never in a million years would have thought that he could sort of look and be at the level you can see that he's at [at 35]."
Rosewall concurred, saying, "It's an amazing effort. Yeah, it's great. I'm one of millions who are Federer fans. I'll be happy to see him win the tournament.
"No reason why he can't. I think he's happy with his personal life. Physically, if he's really back to 100 percent -- and I think he is. Maybe the six months off last year has done him some good, has revitalized his interest and desire."
Sure, but can he see Federer making the Australian Open final four years from now?
Rosewall laughed.
"Well, it's a different kettle of fish now to what it was many, many years ago," he said after thinking about it for a moment. "The depth in the men's competition is greater, there's so many good other players on the circuit.
"So I think it's going to get tougher for him because of all the younger players coming up."
In others words, no.
And Rosewall's faced creased into a smile, and he laughed again. The last laugh?