Federer returns to competition at the Doha tournament

Roger Federer He will return to the circuit on March 8, when the Doha tournament starts, but his surroundings are already beginning to give clues about what the physical state of the Swiss will be when he steps on a tennis court more than a year after their last meeting. It was Pierre Paganini, Federer's physio, the one who has revealed what his real state is in an interview in the newspaper Tages-Anzeiger and why people shouldn't expect a comeback like the one he starred in in 2017, when he won Australia and Wimbledon.

“The big difference from that was that when he came back to Australia, after not competing since Wimbledon 2016, his muscles were still there. Now we have had a complete break in which his muscles have deteriorated considerably. There was a long time between the first operation and when in July we saw that we could go back to training little by little, “said Paganini in an interview with Rene Stauffer.” His muscles were not at the same level as before and there were many imbalances. He needed more recovery time. When we started training, we started from scratch “, he pointed.

Federer, who has not competed since the Australian Open in 2020, has undergone two knee arthroscopies in the last year and has gradually delayed his return to the circuit until he confirmed that he would play in Doha. “Roger only plays when he knows he can do well. Now we will see how his game reacts. It is important to protect him well. You cannot compare this to 2016. For Roger it is a victory if he can get back on the court, play and say “Hey, I played and I feel good. Your knee has caused problems for you for many years, but you can have it under control, with an adapted plan and specific exercises. He and his entire team have been working on it for a long time. That a player who has played more than 1,500 games in his career has had so many reconstructions in different parts of the body is part of the day to day, “said Paganini.