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Roger Federer cancels the Australian Open because he apparently does not trust himself to play for the title. Maybe in a few months this will turn out to be a wise decision.
Craig Tiley, the tournament director of the Australian Open, let tennis fans breathe a sigh of relief a week ago. “All the players have agreed, including Roger,” said Tiley, unofficially announcing Federer’s comeback in February. Now everything turns out differently. As can be read on the maestro’s website, the 39-year-old does not start in Melbourne.
«Roger decided not to play the Australian Open in 2021. He’s made great strides in his knee and fitness over the past few months, ”Federer’s manager Tony Godsick is quoted as saying. In the long term, it is “the best decision for him to return to the tour after the Australian Open”.
At first glance, this withdrawal is a shock for every Federer fan. Will he even be able to compete for the big titles again? Or do you have to come to terms with the fact that perhaps the greatest tennis player of all time is now very close to the end of his career?
The plan is clear: Olympics and Wimbledon have priority
Of course, one can only speculate about the future. But the forfait doesn’t have to mean something bad. Federer had announced two weeks ago that he was not as far as he had wished after having had two operations on his right knee. «I was hoping that I would be at 100 percent by October, but unfortunately I wasn’t – and still am not today. It will be close with the Australian Open. ”
He wants to take the necessary time and only take the next step when he is ready. With these statements, Federer already indicated that if he had the slightest doubt he would forego a start at the Aussie Open. Because summer has a clear priority for him, as he recently emphasized: Wimbledon, the Olympic Games in Tokyo and the US Open in New York are the big goals of the season. “Whether I come back in two months or in six months makes no difference to me,” said Federer in mid-December at the “Sports Awards”.
In the long term, it can be an advantage that Federer can skip the Aussie Open. Instead of immediately contesting an exhausting Grand Slam tournament with matches over five sets, he can approach everyday tournament life again through smaller tournaments. The French Open, the second Grand Slam of the year, will not take place until the end of May.
Federer doesn’t want to rush anything
His knee won’t be that bad anyway. Otherwise Godsick wouldn’t say he’s already starting talks this week for tournaments that start in late February and then come up with a schedule for the rest of the year.
Anyone who has been following Federer’s career for some time knows: the maestro only contests a tournament if he is convinced that he can win it. He doesn’t seem to have that feeling for the Australian Open. Federer doesn’t seem to have the confidence to start again from 0 to 100. After all, a year has passed since his last game on the ATP Tour.
Match practice is missing. The search for trust – both in the knee and in your own abilities – is complicated. Especially when most of the competition has been playing tournaments again since September and no longer needs any start-up time. Federer wants to prevent a hasty return and get himself back into top form step by step. It may well pay off in the summer.
