the effect of a “degenerative” knee and a “traumatic” practice

Will Roger Federer relish at Wimbledon turf? Since the Swiss announced on Sunday (August 15th) that he would undergo a new operation on his right knee, the future of the former world number one in tennis has been uncertain. Exemplary in physical management since the start of his career, the corecordman of the number of Grand Slam titles (20 major tournaments), with the Serbian Novak Djokovic and the Spaniard Rafael Nadal, has again been betrayed by his body.

For the third time in a year and a half, the neo-quadragenarian is preparing to resort to surgery and will therefore be kept away for many months from the ATP circuit. Optimistic by nature, the native of Basel hopes that the grass will be greener in 2022: “I want to be able to run later, to be able to come back to the circuit later”, he explained in a video posted on Instagram. But it is nonetheless realistic:

« I know it’s going to be difficult to have another operation at this age. “

This is also the opinion of the medical profession. “Three operations on the same knee is a lot”, agree in saying the sports doctors questioned by The world. Although Roger Federer’s initial pathology is not clearly identified – the Swiss has remained discreet on this subject – specialists find it difficult to believe that he could one day treat the London public with a new tweener, a winning passing between his legs.

“With Roger Federer, we are so admiring his technique, his fluidity, his performances, that we imagine that he will do a“ thing ”like no other. But if we reason scientifically, we have a hard time believing it “, slips a doctor who intervenes at the French Tennis Federation (FFT).

Age, a risk factor

For the Swiss, who celebrated his 40th spring on August 8, age has become an additional risk factor. If he did not auscultate Roger Federer, the orthopedic surgeon and traumatologist Gilbert Versier sees in this new injury the effects of a “Degenerative knee”, which has deteriorated over “Repetitive microtrauma during practice” of tennis. “Meniscal lesions in very high level athletes, from a certain age, are signs of degeneration”, adds the doctor.

Meniscal lesions are common in tennis

As the doctor working at the FFT reminds us, “Modern tennis is more and more violent for the joints”. And the menisci, knee shock absorbers and stabilizers of the patellofemoral joint – between the femur and the patella – are extremely stressed. Abrupt starts, cushioning and taking of support in pivot, the meniscal lesions are thus frequent in the medium of the small yellow ball and can cause sharp pain, even an inability to run.

To heal, specialists recommend rest. But to return to competition more quickly, athletes perform partial meniscectomies. “This consists of removing the fragments of unstable menisci which are responsible for pain, sticking, or even blockages”, specifies Doctor Gilbert Versier.

The latter adds that if Roger Federer had recourse to this surgical act – which he is convinced – he probably has associated cartilage damage. Which could prove to be more problematic, since medicine does not yet allow the cartilage to be rebuilt.

A return to clay?

Besides age, the pace of the competitions to which tennis players are subjected does not promote recovery. Between games lasting more than three hours, every two days, during the fortnight of a major tournament, and the time difference when they change continent, the key to success lies in being careful with your mount.

In this game, Roger Federer distinguished himself by adopting a more pragmatic approach and an “economic” style of play. He has developed an aerial game, a model of aesthetics, where his Spanish rival Rafael Nadal unleashes devastating forehands. “If I watch Federer play, I listen to classical music, if it’s Nadal, I put AC / DC”, summarized, in April, Thomas Johansson, winner of the Australian Open in 2002.

More than twenty years after his debut on the court, the future of the Swiss now lies in the hands of surgeons. But not only. If the best turf player of the Open era (eight wins at Wimbledon) wants to play again, he may have to reconsider the choice of his preferred surface. Because the surface of the court also has an impact on injuries.

“Whoever plays a lot on clay will tend to be less injured, recalls the D^r Gilbert Versier. It’s a little traumatic surface, because you can slip. It is relatively flexible. ” Unlike grass, where the ball is very fast, or resin pitches, which have become widely democratized in recent years.

Roger Federer will he play a 23^e tournament in his London garden? “Of course I would like to play it again, but at my age, you are never really sure what to expect”, he declared on July 7, after his defeat in the quarter-finals, against the Polish Hubert Hurkacz. If he regains his footwork, the Swiss could be satisfied with the ocher of Roland-Garros, a tournament he had deserted in May to prepare … Wimbledon.