Roger Federer returns after 14-month Layoff, earning first win over No. 1 British Dan Evans

Roger Federer hadn’t played an ATP game in 14 months, so it was understandable that he was upset with a few new modes when he returned to court at the Qatar ExxonMobil Open on Wednesday.

The 20-time Grand Slam champion had to ask umpire Mohamed Lahyani how many seconds were allowed between points, and later he was not sure who was in charge of the towels, the players or the ball boys. He shook after each meeting. He also discussed his new sneakers from the Swiss brand On, “The Roger Pro,” which is 100 percent carbon fiber.

Playing his first game in 405 days, the 39-year-old soon settled in and looked more like his own old man in a 7-6 victory ( 8), 3-6, 7-5 on British No. 1 Dan Evans in a game played before a limited number of fans. Federer, who previously won the Doha title in 2005, ’06 and ’11, will face Nikoloz Basilashvili of Georgia in the quarter-finals.

“It feels good to be back,” he said in his court interview. “I’m happy to be standing here whether I win or lose, but winning really feels better. But it was really good. Dan played a good game too. He has been an amazing training partner over the past two weeks [in Dubai], we played over 20 sets and went on. It was fun.

“And thanks for coming out, that was really special. I am very happy. ”

It was Federer’s first game on the tour since losing to Novak Djokovic in the semifinals of the 2020 Australian Open. He later played a show against Rafael Nadal in South Africa, but then sat down to -out the rest of 2020 while going through two procedures on his right knee. He also sat out the Australian Open this year before debating at Doha.

Playing on a hard court at medium speed under slightly windy conditions, Federer moved and did good service. He made a mistake on his first set point in the position when he missed a forehand volley swing into the net and then let out another cuckle. On the second set point, he smoked a rear shot past Evans.

In the sure third set, he fought on two resting points for a grip for 4-3, spraying a drop forehand bullet to escape one of them.

With Evans serving at 4-5, Federer earned a game point when the Brit volley hit a forehand into the net, but Evans served-and-volleyed to win the next point and then hold for 5-all .

Serving down 5-6, Evans put a back-up into the net to go down 15-40 and give Federer two more match points. Federer won it with a one-handed winner down the line, then raised his hands in celebration before catching Evans at the net.

“I was tired, so I was more focused on being tired and I said, ‘You know what, if I go out, I go out to swim,’ and more energy at Dan at the end. But I was serving well and I thought I played a really good game so I’m really happy with my performance, ”Federer said in court. “And of course, the ending was nice but it helped me out a bit. We were delighted to share the court with Dan and it’s nice to end up with a backhand down the line, of course, always on a maids spot. ”

When asked if he played without pain on his knee, Federer said: “Well, I don’t know if he was ever completely painless. But you feel tired and you are not sure if it is the muscle or whatever is going on. But of course I don’t care because this is how I felt through it, how important I feel the next day and so on and so forth for the next six months to basic. It’s been a long and difficult road for me, but I enjoyed it nonetheless. I have to say, it has been a big challenge for me in my tennis course and getting back at my age is not something that is very simple, but I have an amazing team around me that was always taking support me and make it a lot easier. And it was worth it because I played a good game today. ”

However, Federer wants to manage expectations for this week and is preparing for this year’s biggest tournaments where he feels he can compete – Wimbledon, Tokyo Olympics and Open Championship in the US.

“Right now, we’ll see how games go,” Federer said before the game. “We’ll see how training goes with the key people … It still is [a matter of] building up to be stronger, better, healthier, faster and all. I’m hoping with Wimbledon that I’m going to be 100 percent and, from then on, the season will start for me in a big way. Everything until then, you will see exactly how it goes.

“I might be surprised. I have already done it in action in the last three weeks. I was amazed at how well he did. But we know that matches are a different animal, so right now I’m just taking it from day to day. I’m glad I’m back on the tour again. “

By taking 14 months off, he hopes he can add to the back end of his career. He will be 40 in August.

“I believe what you miss through injuries can contribute to the back end of your career,” Federer said. “I feel like someone, myself, who has played almost 1,500 games, that breaking is always welcome … I enjoyed my time at home. After 20 years on Turas, being home for an extended period of time, to use that time in a different way, has been really nice. I’ve missed the tour. I have missed the second family, [which is] as I say the Tour. ”

While Federer has been away, his main rivals Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal have continued to take control of the men’s game, winning 10 of the last 11 Grand Slam titles.

Djokovic, 33, won his 18th major title at the Australian Open in January, and last week Federer’s record of most weeks at No. 1 world with his 311th week.

Nadal, 34, tied Federer at 20 majors by winning the French Open last October and his favorite is to win his 14th French Open title and 21st Grand Slam crown later in the year. spring.

“What Novak and Rafa have done, so late, is amazing,” Federer said. “They are not 25 anymore. They are able to support him. Novak did it again in Australia and Rafa did it again at Roland Garros. It seems [to be] at the highest level which is good for tennis and is good for the debate. I’m more worried [on] my own game, my own health over the table, to be honest.

“I think for them, maybe this is bigger than me at the moment because for me, it was very important how close I was getting to Pete Samparas’ record… As soon as you get e, you try to do your best and that is what I tried to do. But for them, maybe I’m the measuring stick like Pete was to me.

“I’m in a different situation but of course, you like to keep all the records. But all the records are there to be broken. The boys are untrue, we all know that. I hope they keep going I hope they can do everything maybe they want to and look back without regret… We are to leave the game without any regrets and I think, from that point of view, we will all sleep very well at night. ”