For the first time in the past two decades, Roger Federer will not be present at Wimbledon. The Swiss champion made his debut on the London meadows in 1999, one year after winning the junior title. Since then, the former world number 1 has not missed a single edition of the Championships (except for 2020, when the tournament was canceled due to the pandemic).
The 20-time Grand Slam champion played his last official match in London almost a year ago, clearly giving in to Hubert Hurkacz on Center Court. A few weeks later, the 40-year-old from Basel announced that he had suffered a relapse in his right knee and had to operate for the third time in 18 months.
The King intends to return to the Laver Cup, which will be staged at the O2 Arena in London at the end of September, and then compete in the Basel ATP in the autumn. According to his statements, Roger is expected to play some tournaments in 2023 as well.
During a meeting with the press, John McEnroe had wonderful words for Federer.
McEnroe praises King Roger
“Roger Federer is a living legend. We all know that. He’s the epitome of what you would want your kids to be when they grew up.
And he’s the most beautiful player I’ve ever watched play. I idolized Laver. He’s kind of an updated Laver to me. Twenty years, you got to look at the bright side. You had a lot of times where you got to watch this guy play and win it numerous times.
We have to sort of hope that whatever he decides he’s happy with. He’s 40. He’s made it this far. It’s amazing,” McEnroe said. Wimbledon Championship is only a few days away now. The third Grand Slam of the year is all set to begin without ATP and WTA ranking points.
With the announcement of draws, it is clear that the path to the title will not be easy for the Serb. Speaking about his chances, McEnroe termed him a favorite going into the competition. However, he also expressed his concern about the 20-time Grand Slam winner’s performance since the Australian Open debacle.
“He’s been trying to get it back, so it’s sort of set up, at least for him now, to hopefully get his act back together. I’m not 100% sure. I think he’s the heavy favorite. Novak hopefully will play his best because it would be a shame that this continuation of what this debacle in Australia would continue to affect him,” he said.