Roger Federer hopes to be “100 per cent” fit in time for Wimbledon as he prepares to return to Doha this week.
Federer, who needs two surgeries to correct a long-term knee issue, is set to play in the Qatar Open this week.
The 39-year-old Swiss, with 20 Grand Slam titles to his name, said at a press conference on Sunday: “I am delighted to be back playing tournament again. It’s been a long time. I didn’t expect this to take that long. “
Federer, who is a three-time champion in Doha but has not competed there since 2012, will face either British one-on-one practice partner and once practice partner Dan Evans or the Frenchman Jeremy Chardy in his first game.
He said: “Of course at this point I feel it’s just about ‘we’ll see how games go, we’ll see how training goes with the top boys and the professional players, not just ‘compelling participants’. I’ve been playing a lot two-on-one in the last few months and so on.
“I know I need to go back to training after this again so from this point of view it’s just about building up to be stronger, better, healthier, faster and faster. -everything.
“Then I hope with Wimbledon that I will be 100 per cent and that is when the season starts for me.
“Everything so far is just ‘let’s see how it goes’ – I might be surprised but then I’ve already done it in the last few weeks, he added I wonder how well it went, but as we know, matches are a different animal.
“Right now it’s like I take it on a daily basis. (I’m) glad I’m back on tour again and I’ll see how things go but of course, for me, it all starts with the grass. ”
Federer did not play a competitive game from the 2020 Australian Open – more than a year ago – and will leave the top five for the first time in five years on Monday, but the Swiss player claimed that the cards were retired.
He said: “Retirement has never really been on the cards. I think it’s more of a conversation if the knee keeps bothering me for months and months – then let’s take a look at it.
“Now is not the time to think about that … we will say in the autumn of this year.
“I feel like the story is not over. It’s not as if there’s one particular reason I wanted to keep playing tennis except that I enjoy playing tennis, I like being on the road.
“I’m still working on it but perhaps one of the other reasons for coming back is that I want to be so high again in playing against the biggest players and in the biggest competitions and hope to win them again.
“I hope to be able to play in front of a crowd again.”