Belgium’s David Goffin has said Roger Federer is hitting at a ‘good intensity’ following their training session at the French Open.
The two tennis stars had a hitting session with each other in Roland Garros on Friday, two days before the main draw gets underway. 39-year-old Federer has only played in two tournaments heading into the Grand Slam this season after returning from a knee injury. In Doha he reached the semi-finals before losing to Nikoloz Basilashvili. Then at the Geneva Open he suffered an opening match loss to Spain’s Pablo Andujar.
Providing a glimpse into Federer’s current game, the world No.13 says there are encouraging signs coming from the Swiss Maestro. Goffin, who won his fifth ATP title in Montpellier earlier this year, said he left the hitting session feeling ‘quite satisfied.’
“It made me happy to find him,” he told reporters. “I had seen him briefly in Doha, where we were both participating in the same tournament. It was very good training. We were both well on our feet. There were good strikes. It was going fast. The conditions are a bit faster, it’s a bit warmer and the clay is a bit drier. From start to finish there was a good atmosphere and a good intensity. So I was quite satisfied.”
Goffin, who is nine years younger than Federer, has played the former world No.1 11 times on the Tour so far in his career. However, the only time he won was at the 2017 ATP Finals in London. One of their meetings occurred at the 2012 French Open where the Belgian played his first Grand Slam main draw.
“It’s clear that a lot has changed since then,” Goffin reflected. “Today we are in different situations. I am 30 years old. He is soon 40. He must approach the matches in a different way, by having to seek to shorten the points.’
“Our goals are also different. For him, it’s mostly Wimbledon and he comes here (to the French Open) to gain confidence. With his knee operations, it’s been two years since he’s been seen here, but I found him to be quite sharp.’
“For my part, I hope to perform really well here.” He added.
Goffin faces a tricky opening match at the French Open against Italian rising star Lorenzo Musetti who reached the semi-finals of an ATP 5000 event in Mexico earlier this year, as well as the Lyon Open just over a week ago. Meanwhile, Federer starts his campaign against Denis Istomin.
