In the photo: Roger Federer holding the 2002 Vienna trophy
The ATP tournament of Vienna, the Erste Bank Open, is trying it all to make sure 17-time Grand Slam champion and tennis legend Roger Federer features into its 2015 Entry List.
As soon as the World No.3 was shockingly ousted in his debut match at the 2015 Rolex Masters in Shanghai, rumours started spreading regarding a possible come back of the Swiss at the Austrian tournament, 12 years after his last appearance.
The tournament of Vienna has been promoted to ATP 500 level this year, and to make sure they can celebrate the mean in great fashion, the organisers are keeping a last-minute Wild Card for the Swiss Maestro. The invitation is valid until the very last second.
Herwig Straka, tournament director in Vienna, confirmed saying: “We are going to wait and keep the invitation until the very last moment for Roger”. It is rumoured that even Tommy Haas, close friend of the Swiss, has been trying to intervene and convince Federer it would be a good idea to change his schedule for once. Roger is used to playing his home tournament in Basel, to then Paris Bercy Masters 1000 and end the season in London for the ATP World Tour Finals.
What will Roger decide to do?
If he will agree to compete in Vienna, he will then be forced to compete for two consecutive weeks, as starting on October 26th, he will for sure attend the tournament in Basel. If that will be the case, then the Swiss could decide to withdraw from the last Masters 1000 tournament in Paris, to be fresh for the grand finale in London.
Federer has played 5 times in Vienna before, winning the title in 2002 and 2003. The 2003 success marks his last appearance in Austria.
