Reigning Australian Open and Wimbledon champion Roger Federer has hinted at skipping the French Open yet again in 2018 like he did in 2017.
Federer, the current World No. 2 decided to give the entire European clay court season a miss after realizing that the red dirt could prove to be troublesome for his lingering back issues. Moreover, Federer had won the French Open in the past and didn’t need to prove anything to anyone.
Additionally, with his arch-rival Rafael Nadal showing imperious form throughout the 2017 season, especially on clay, it was almost impossible for Federer to win the French Open and there were murmurs in the media that he chose not to participate in the Clay Major after discussing the matter with his team, including his coaches Severin Luthi and Ivan Ljubicic.
“Australian Open, Wimbledon and US Open are cornerstones, everything which lies between we’ll take it from there,” Federer told SFR Sport.
“We’ll only step on court if we are 100% fit.”
The Swiss legend also opened about his retirement plans. He asserted that he wasn’t planning to retire in the immediate future, but didn’t expect to play for another 10 years.
“I currently intend to continue to play for a longer period, hopefully for a few more years,” he added.
“I doubt though, it will be another 10 years.”
