Roger Federer is back. Or maybe he had never left. The King – despite his long period of absence from the field: 13 and a half months – has always been present, like a silent sovereign.
He returned to the ATP 250 tournament in Doha, which he has already won three times: 2005, 2006 and 2011. And he brings as a dowry his history, his beauty, the grace of each gesture. Yet after more than a decade of athletic domination, Federer has shown his fragility.
It’s understandable, at 39. For the multiple winner of Wimbledon (8 triumphs) and for the holder of 20 Grand Slam titles, there were two knee operations, so much so that at one point, there was even talk of a possible and definitive farewell (but he always denied it).
In the meantime, Novak Djokovic ousted him from the throne, the number 1 ATP today (for the 311th consecutive week: Roger had stopped at 310) is the Serb.
The new and contested ranking system – redefined to mitigate the consequences of the pandemic – certainly favored him, allowing him to stay in the top spots.
This will be Switzerland’s eighth participation in the Qatar tournament. The beginnings even go back to 19 years, in 2002. “The priority was to get back to health – said King Roger – I don’t even know if I will be competitive”
No one knows. But it does him the honor to get back in the game, to try, to raise the bar and to gain new momentum, a new life as a winner. : “I’m worried about my knee, but playing tennis is a bit like riding a bicycle.
And I know how to do it “” I want to play tennis all my life, and still celebrate great victories. I thought that during the break I would not have paid much attention to the sport, on the contrary I found myself following the results and the matches: Usually I don’t do it if I don’t play a tournament ” , he told Swiss radio SRF.
Roger Federer talks about his knee
“I’m not sure my knee is going to hold up,” Roger Federer said. “But I’m confident, otherwise I wouldn’t be here. The knee will dictate the shape of my return.
It’s rare to see a 40-year-old return to the circuit after so much time. “Roger Federer’s words seem to indicate that he hasn’t fully gotten rid of the pain in his knee, but the Swiss star pointed out that everything was “under control” Federer also believes he can play back-to-back straight sets for five days in his current state.
“It’s important that I don’t have any pain,” Federer continued. “I’m curious to see how this will turn out. When I wake up in the morning, I feel pretty good. The pain is under control.
I can play two and a half hours for five days in a row. There are a lot of good things. But the matches are different. When nerves also play a role. ”
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