Roger Federer to overlook Australian Open; planning 2021 return
[ad_1]
Image Source : GETTY IMAGES Roger Federer Roger Federer is withdrawing from the Australian Open whereas he continues making ready to return to motion after two operations on his proper knee and a tour absence that may have lasted longer than a yr, his agent advised The Associated Press. Tony Godsick — Federer’s long-time consultant and CEO of their administration firm, TEAM8 — stated Sunday he’s engaged on placing collectively a 2021 tennis calendar for the 20-time Grand Slam champion, who plans to get again on tour quickly after the yr’s first main tennis match. This ends Federer’s streak of 21 consecutive appearances at Melbourne Park, a run that started together with his 2000 debut there and consists of six championships. “Roger has decided not to play the 2021 Australian Open. He has made strong progress in the last couple of months with his knee and his fitness. However, after consultation with his team, he decided that the best decision for him in the long run is to return to competitive tennis after the Australian Open,” Godsick stated in an announcement despatched to the AP. “I will start discussions this coming week for tournaments that begin in late February and then start to build a schedule for the rest of the year,” Godsick stated. The begin of the Australian Open’s fundamental draw was delayed by three weeks due to the coronavirus pandemic and is now scheduled to start on Feb. 8. In different information associated to the match, Tennis Australia introduced that five-time runner-up Andy Murray was given a wild-card entry. Murray, a three-time main champion and former No. 1, is 122nd within the rankings after going by way of two hip operations and contemplating retirement. The 39-year-old Federer, who has spent extra weeks atop the ATP rankings than anybody else however is No. 5 after his hiatus, is at the moment coaching in his traditional offseason house of Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The option to delay his comeback got here with enter from coaches Severin Luthi and Ivan Ljubicic and health coach Pierre Paganini. Federer hasn’t performed a match match since late January on the 2020 Australian Open, the place he was clearly injured whereas dropping in straight units to eventual champion Novak Djokovic within the semifinals. Soon after, Federer participated in an exhibition charity occasion with Rafael Nadal in entrance of a report tennis crowd of greater than 50,000 individuals at a soccer stadium in Cape Town, South Africa. Just weeks later, Federer introduced he had arthroscopic surgical procedure on his proper knee and could be sidelined for at the very least 4 months. He later had a second process on that knee and wound up lacking the remainder of the pandemic-altered season. One measure of Federer’s reputation: Despite showing in solely six matches in 2020, he lately was voted the winner of the ATP Tour followers’ favourite award for the 18th consecutive time. Until this knee problem, Federer solely had his profession interrupted as soon as by an operation — on his left knee in 2016. He sat out the second half of that season, together with the Rio de Janeiro Olympics and the U.S. Open, however was again at his greatest when he resumed enjoying, successful the Australian Open and Wimbledon in 2017. He received the Australian Open once more the next yr for No. 20 in his Grand Slam assortment, which incorporates eight trophies from Wimbledon, 5 from the U.S. Open and one from the French Open. While Federer was sidelined this yr, Nadal equaled his males’s report for many main championships by amassing his twentieth at Roland Garros in October. Federer posted a congratulatory message on social media to Nadal that day, saying he hopes “20 is just another step on the continuing journey for both of us.” Djokovic’s title in Australia this yr moved him nearer to the opposite members of the Big Three of males’s tennis with a complete of 17.
[ad_2]
