Roger Federer has stated that how he fairs at this year’s Wimbledon Championships could have an impact on what he plans to do next in terms of what tournaments he plays and his career as a whole.
Federer is seeded sixth at this year’s grass court major which will be only the fifth tournament he has played so far in 2021. He missed most of last year due to a knee injury which required two surgeries. Since returning to competitive tennis he has experienced mixed fortunes on the Tour with a win-loss record of 5-3. The former world No.1 reached the fourth round of the French Open before pulling out of the draw amid concerns related to his fitness. However, more recently he lost in the second round in Halle.
Throughout his comeback, the 39-year-old has said his priority is to reach full fitness in time for Wimbledon where he will be seeking an historic ninth title there. Speaking to the media ahead of the tournament, Federer confirmed that how deep he goes in the draw will impact on what he does afterwards. Confirming that he is still undecided about playing at the Tokyo Olympics.
“With the team we decided we’re going to reassess the situation after Wimbledon because it’s going to have an impact,” said Federer. “If I play really good here or really bad, I think it has an impact on how everything might look for in the summer.’
“My feeling is I would like to go to the Olympics. I would like to play as many tournaments as possible. But I think we decided now let’s just get through Wimbledon, sit down as a team, and then decide where we go from there.”
With a resume featuring a record-equalling 20 Grand Slam titles and more than 300 weeks at the top of the rankings, Federer isn’t pulling the plug on life as a tennis player just yet. Although he hints that how much longer he plays could depend on the results he produced.
“The goal was not to play until 40. This all mainly came in the last years. I never thought also with the last surgeries I’ve had I would still be going,” he admits.
“I feel I still really love it (playing tennis), I enjoy myself. I will see about the results, if they’re going to come back. This is why Wimbledon is clearly very important to me right now.”
This year will be Federer’s 22nd main draw appearance at the Championships, where he has won 101 out of 114 matches played. However, this year the atmosphere is somewhat very different compared to the past.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, players have been placed into a bubble and only allowed to stay in an approved hotel. Even those who live in London will not be allowed to stay at their homes whilst playing in the tournament. Protocols include frequent testing, not being allowed to leave their hotel unless it is to go to The All England Club and players can’t communicate with anybody outside of the bubble (in person) until they exit the tournament.
“It does feel totally different than the last 20 years here since I’ve been coming here. We would arrive with the family, kids would be running everywhere. We organized the grocery shopping, get the house set up and all that stuff. Here we’re with the team,” Federer commented.
“I still feel a big privilege that I’m actually able to play Wimbledon. If I look back at everything that I went through for the last year and a bit more with the injury, also with the pandemic, it’s great that Wimbledon is back on. I’m happy I’m here.”
Federer will start his Wimbledon campaign against France’s Adrian Mannarino whom he leads 6-0 in their head-to-head.
