Roger Federer has ended his six-month hiatus from competitive tennis due to injury with a 6-3, 6-4, win over Great Britain’s Dan Evans at the Hopman Cup.
The return of Federer was one that broke records at the mixed exhibition event. A crowd of 13,500 attended the Perth Arena to watch the Swiss player in action, the highest ever attendance to a tennis match in western Australia. As he walked onto the court, Federer was greeted with a standing ovation from his fans.
“The standing ovation coming in tonight was extra special.” Said Federer. “I can’t thank you guys (the crowd) enough for making this a cool comeback. 15 years have been a long time (since I last played here), but I’m here now and I’m enjoying myself.”
Playing in his first competitive match since his semifinal loss at the Wimbledon championships in July, Federer displayed no signs of rustiness in his game. His signature movement as well as a stunning shot selection was on full display at the Perth Arena as he blasted 24 winners past Evans.
That’s one way to kick-start your return to tennis, @rogerfederer 💥#HopmanCup pic.twitter.com/x0WODNa0lF
— Hopman Cup (@hopmancup) 2 January 2017
Federer’s first strike occurred in the seventh game of the match. A Winning forehand shot at the net rewarded the 35-year-old his first break point against Evans’ serve. The break was then secured with ease thanks to a winning combination of a deep forehand return followed by a forehand cross-court winner to break for a 4-2 lead. Federer’s only blip occurred in the game immediately after when he was forced to save a duo of break points before extending his lead to 5-2. Closing the set out was no issue for the 17-time grand slam champion as he raced to a 40-0 lead before an unforced error from Evans gifted him the set.
Cheered on by the packed crowd at the Perth Arena, Federer’s dominance in the match intensified. A lengthy rally at the start of the second set concluded with an Evans backhand drifting wide to reward Federer the set and break lead. The Brit did display glimmers of the talent he has, including a series of outstanding passing shots, but it failed to dent Federer’s stronghold in the match.
Strolling towards the one-sided victory, a backhand mishit from Evans handed the Swiss a trio of match points. Federer capitalized on his first opportunity when a serve out wide was unsuccessfully returned by his rival.
Despite the one-sided win, there is still room for improvement for the Swiss, who produced 20 unforced errors and only converted two out of his eight break point opportunities.
During his on-court interview, Federer spoke about his decision to end his 2016 season early. Reflecting on his time away from the tour, the 35-year-old is confident that he made the right choice.
“After Wimbledon I had to pull the plug. It was just too much for my knee. I’m happy I did it, I have no regrets. It’s a long time (my absence), but It was quite enjoyable. I spent time with my family, with our friends, my parents and so forth.” Said Federer.
“Of course you start missing tennis again and you can’t be more happy to return to a tennis court.”
Playing in only one match since his comeback, Federer has already stated that he is chasing after grand slam title No.18. It will be a tough mission to achieve for a player who last won a major at the 2012 Wimbledon Championships, but the 35-year-old is ready to seize his opportunity.
“It will be nice to win another one of course, I’ll either take two or three or four.” He joked about winning a major.
“But we will see, it’s tough at the top, a lot of good guys are there right now. A lot of young guys coming up too.
“The gap is definitely not very big, but I give it a chance and we will see what happens.”
Switzerland now leads Great Britain 1-0 in the Hopman Cup. Federer will return to the court later in the day for the mixed doubles alongside Belinda Bencic.
