(Reuters) – World number one Roger Federer said on Friday that he was excited to return to competitive tennis at the Qatar Open next week after being a year old.
The 20-time Grand Slam champion has not played a tournament since going out in the Australian Open semi-final against Novak Djokovic last year, and has undergone two knee surgeries since then.
“Here we are, about to fly to Doha. It’s been a year since my last event, ”said Federer, 39, in a video posted on his Twitter page.
“I can tell I’m excited … it’s been a long and hard road. I know I’m not at the finish line yet but it’s good, I feel like I’m in a good place, I’ve been working well and I feel pumped very much. ”
The Doha Open starts Monday.
Reporting by Julien Pretot; Edited by Ken Ferris