In August of 2021, Roger Federer announced that he’d be undergoing knee surgery and would be out for “many, many months.”
A month later the 20-time Grand Slam champion tells a Swiss media outlet that rehab is going well.
“The worst is behind me,” the 40-year-old Federer said in a statement to to Swiss channel SFR Sport. “I'm looking forward to everything that is to come. When you come back after an injury, every day that goes by feels better than the last. It's an emotional moment.”
Federer, who has earned 1251 victories and 103 titles on the ATP Tour, says that he will soon get back to training, but not quite yet.
“It will be a challenge to get back on the circuit. I want to get back to physical training and the court as soon as possible, but it still requires a little patience. The day I start again will be three very tough days.”
Federer, who has now undergone four knee surgeries – one on his left knee in 2016 and three on his right knee, in February and May of 2020, and again last month - says the rehab is going really well. He told Eurosport that he’s feeling strong.
“I'm feeling actually really good, considering you know, that things are not as I hoped they would be, but I'm recovering well and the rehab is going really good I must say,” he said, according to EuroSport. “I've had no setbacks. Every day is a better day. I'm feeling strong and excited for what's to come.”
The Swiss hasn’t been able to spend much time on tour of late, playing just 19 matches since the start of 2020, but he has been getting quite good at rehab.
He says he’s been surprised by how easy it is, and he adds that he does enjoy having time to be at home with his family.
The Swiss maestro didn’t set a timetable for his return, but did hint that he really wants to be in the lineup for next year’s Laver Cup, which will take place at the 02 Arena in September of 2022.
“That’s one of my goals, to really get myself into it again to come back and hopefully play in places like the O2 Arena in London,” he said.
Federer on the Grand Slam: You Need Luck, But It's Possible
Federer also talked about Novak Djokovic’s quest for the Calendar Year Grand Slam, saying that he believes that someday a male player could actually win all four Slams in the same season. But he’s not confident that it will ever happen.
“I think it is possible that it's going to happen again,” he said. “We saw it with Novak, myself and Rafa that we come extremely close. But, you know, just doing it, I think you need a bit of luck. You need perseverance, strength. You need everything you know. And that's why I think it's going to be hard. But it's possible.”