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"He is still so passionate": Roger Federer back on the courts after a year of absence

2021-03-07T06:10:24.365Z


Some 400 days after his last appearance on the circuit, the world No.6, 39, returns this week to Doha. Questions about a


It was at a time when Corona still conjured up an alcoholic drink and Australia's only concern was to drown out gigantic and deadly fires.

It was January 30, 2020 and Roger Federer was playing his last semi-final circuit match in Melbourne against Novak Djokovic.

403 days, two arthroscopies of the right knee and a global pandemic later, the world No.6, 39, returns this week to Doha.

A small event, so much the Swiss legend had sown doubt, even consternation at the end of last year by letting the hypothesis of a retirement hover.

What did he do while he was away?

The man with the twenty Grand Slams underwent two right knee surgeries, the first on February 19, 2020, the second in the spring.

The Balois initially planned to miss his fourth Roland Garros (scheduled for late May before the postponement to the fall) in five years before returning for Wimbledon (finally canceled).

The ace.

The road to recovery has been more winding than expected and from June, Federer made an appointment with his fans in 2021. Before confusing his future by mentioning retirement twice, first in July and especially in December when the prize for the best Swiss sportsman since 1950 was awarded at the Swiss Sports Awards.

"If my career had to end there, well it would be incredible to end it with this price" he had blurted out, opening the way to all the speculations.

The Swiss then skipped the Australian “tour”, as much to perfect his preparation as to avoid the horrors of heavy health constraints far from his family.

In what state does he come back?

“He's still so passionate, clearly.

And so do we, within his team.

Otherwise, he would no longer get involved in the training and preparations that we offer him, entrusted his historic physical trainer Pierre Paganini to Tages-Anzeiger.

Today, he trains almost normally.

He is sweating without thinking for a second about his knee.

But he knows the road will be a bit longer before he can win big titles again.

"

Last practice before ✈️


Feeling 💪🏼 and ready to go!

pic.twitter.com/kkvQTFvWE4

- Roger Federer (@rogerfederer) March 5, 2021

In 2016, Federer had undergone the same type of surgery on his left knee after injuring himself ... while trying to bathe his children.

“I have the feeling that my knee is ready for competition again,” he says.

“I do not see it coming back to 50 or 70%, but there is a large part of the unknown after such a long interruption, observes Paul Quetin, physical trainer at the FFT.

We know the delta that there is between playing training sets and being efficient in competition.

He will not have lost his tennis, but we will all scrutinize his quality of movement.

"

What are its objectives ?

His majesty has planned to set foot on the courts of Doha and Dubai in quick succession, ignore the Miami Masters 1000, of which he is the defending champion, and return in dotted lines for the clay season.

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Beyond his fetish tournament of Wimbledon, which he has already won eight times, his supreme ambition is to win one of the few titles that is still missing from his immense record: Olympic gold in singles.

A last chance is offered to him this summer in Tokyo.

The winning two-set format now seems to be the only one capable of promoting its designs, even if the task promises to be complex ...

🚨 Roger Federer will face either Jeremy Chardy or Dan Evans in his first match on the @ATPTour since January 2020!

pic.twitter.com/7JLOv54ofB

- Tennis TV (@TennisTV) March 6, 2021

“Obviously, someone like him, after everything he's done for tennis, wants to go out the front door, breathes Quetin.

We had players like Rosewall

(46)

or Connors

(44)

who played very late but tennis is really different today.

I have no doubt that Federer's ability to play very well on time, but I am much more questioning about the sequence of matches and tournaments… ”

Is this his last lap?

“He will never put his health at risk,” assures Pierre Paganini.

For him, it is extremely important to be in good health during the second part of his life.

He has that intelligence.

He won't push the machine if it doesn't make sense.

He is not blind.

He is strategic and far-sighted.

"

Forty-year-old in August, multimillionaire, happy father, Federer has nothing to prove for a long time.

"Many would have thought that he stopped five years ago, recently slipped the former German champion Michael Stich.

We have no influence on it.

I wish he would win Wimbledon and say after the final:

You know what, I'm going to stop.

There could be nothing better… ”For his coach Séverin Lüthi, however, it would not be unthinkable to see the legend still playing in 2022.

FALLING RECORDS

If he remains the No. 1 in the hearts of millions of tennis fans, Federer sees his records crumble little by little. This Monday, Novak Djokovic begins his 311th week at the top of the hierarchy. One more than the Swiss, ejected from the top 5 by Tsitsipas. In three months, at Roland Garros, Rafael Nadal could put on his 21 and overtake him in the number of Grand Slam victories. Djokovic, points him to 18 since his title in Australia and seems largely able to overtake the Balois.

Source: leparis

All sports articles on 2021-03-07

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