IT’S a rare moment in tennis history that you would have five living legends of the game standing shoulder-to-shoulder, boasting a total of 60 Grand Slam singles titles between them.

But when arguably the greatest player the sport has ever seen, Roger Federer pulls out a selfie stick, it truly is a once-in-a-lifetime occasion.

Watching the Fed Express master a selfie stick alongside the legendary Rod Laver and fierce rival Rafael Nadal would have been momentous enough, but add Björn Borg and John McEnroe to the equation and it’s one hell of a star-studded line-up.

The greatest selfie in tennis history. Borg, Nadal, Laver, Federer and McEnroe. This was special. #LaverCup pic.twitter.com/sczVJHQsmn — Charlotte Willis (@lottiewillis) August 24, 2016

The five gentleman gathered in New York City on Wednesday to announce a series of updates on the all-new Laver Cup, named in honour of Australia’s own Rod Laver. The inaugural international competition will be held in Prague from September 22-24, 2017.

The Aussie tennis hero was joined on the stage by current greats Nadal and Federer, and former heavyweights Borg and McEnroe to announce their involvement in the event.

First announced back in January, the competition will see a team of European players face-off against a group from the rest of the world.

Federer and Nadal will represent Europe as part of a six-man team to be captained by 11-time Grand Slam champion and former world No. 1 from Sweden, Borg.

The World team will be captained by Borg’s former rival, seven-time Grand Slam champ and also former world No. 1, McEnroe.

media_camera The greats: Bjorn Borg, Rafael Nadal, Rod Laver, Roger Federer and John McEnroe.

“It’s no secret that I’m a huge fan of Rafa and Roger and to know that they’re going to be in the very first one [competition] and from there, all the best players in the world will have the opportunity to compete, I’m honoured and excited about this format,” Laver said.

“You have Europe playing as a team against the rest of the world, and I think that has to be a new feeling for all of the top players around the world,” he added.

“It’s a whole different kettle of fish!” - a phrase that sent a room full of international media into a fit of giggles.

Possibly the most exciting element of the new competition’s format is that it will showcase tennis superstars competing on the same team, pairing up doubles and cheering on each other from the sidelines.

This means for the very first time, Nadal and Federer, with a combined 31 major titles, will stand on the same side of the net as the most dynamic doubles duo the world has ever seen.

“We have been rivals my whole career, so to be on the same team and playing doubles together will be something very, very special and I am very excited about it,” Nadal said.

Federer added: “I think it’s going to absolutely unbelievable, to be on the same side of the net as Rafa, finally!

“He has the biggest forehand and now I can actually support him and say, ‘Hey, we want more!’ I will get so much joy out of it. I can’t wait to play doubles with Rafa.”

media_camera Rafael Nadal, Rod Laver and Roger Federer during a Laver Cup media announcement in NYC.

The Rafa-Fed dream team aside, next year’s inaugural Laver Cup will reignite one of the greatest rivalries in tennis history between Borg and McEnroe, who faced each other 22 times during their careers. The pair will break their 11-11 head-to-head tie when they captain the Europe and World teams, committing for the first three years of the comp.

“You know, to be a captain of maybe the two greatest players in the history of tennis here, I think they know what to do or not to do,” Borg said about leading Federer and Nadal.

“But maybe you come into the match and maybe something is not working, I can help.”

McEnroe said: “I’m proud to be captain and hopefully pull off the big upset over Europe next year.”

media_camera John McEnroe and Bjorn Borg shake hands in a Champions Cup semi-final match in Boston, 2010.

Nadal escaped from the press conference shortly after the selfie was taken for a practice session ahead of the upcoming 2016 US Open, which starts on Monday. But Federer, who will miss the tournament while recovering from a knee injury, stuck around to share his impartial view on the players competing this year, including Australia’s top hope Nick Kyrgios.

“Novak [Djokovic] is the favourite, he’s got a great record against Andy [Murray], he’s got an unbelievable record in the US Open as well and when it comes to the hard courts usually he is very tough to beat,” the five-time US Open champion and world No. 4 said.

On Kyrgios, who has been handed the 14th seed, Federer told news.com.au: “I think it depends a lot on the draw ... I think the grand slams are a true test for Nick.

“It’s the best-of-five [sets], keeping it all together for two to three weeks, it’s a long time for any player and when you don’t have as much experience yet it just takes a lot of energy out of you to stay focused all the way through.

“But I’m a big fan of him [Kyrgios], his game, I think he’s going to be one of the future players.

“He’s always a guy that can cause an upset, but a grand slam is not about an upset, a grand slam is about winning seven matches, best-of-five. So that’s going to be interesting to see how he’s going to cope but I predict he’s going to play on to at least make the fourth round,” Federer added.

media_camera Australia’s Nick Kyrgios has been handed the 14th seed for the 2016 US Open.

But the Swiss tennis ace, who weeks ago announced that he was pulling the plug on his 2016 season, revealed has one goal in mind: Get ready for 2017.

“I never thought I would have a year like this, my god,” he told reporters. “I’m happy to be in New York, but in a way, it’s painful. It was hard to watch the Olympics. I would have loved to be there, thinking about representing Switzerland and the chance to win a medal. But you can’t have it all and I want to be super strong when I come back in January.”

The Laver Cup will be played on one court over three days at the 02 Arena in Prague, Czech Republic in September 2017.