The 17-time major champion announced Thursday that he has officially withdrawn from the 2016 French Open to deal with a lingering back injury, as well as to avoid any unnecessary risks that could impact the remainder of his career.
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Bencic has also had a tough run, losing opening-round matches at four of her last five events since the 19-year-old made the final at St Petersburg, Russia, in February.
“I regret to announce that I have made the decision not to play in this year’s French Open”, he wrote on his official Facebook page.
Federer’s absence also means that nine-time French Open champion Rafael Nadal will be elevated to the No. 4 seed in the main draw. Permission to use quotations from this article is granted subject to appropriate credit being given to www.theeagleonline.com.ng as the source.
Asked last week if Federer’s back problems could spell doom for him, U.S. Davis Cup captain Jim Courier, a former world No. 1, said: “I don’t know enough about how severe his physical issues are, but let’s hope he does play”. The Swiss then lasted just two matches at the Rome Masters where he was dumped out by Dominic Thiem. But, Federer’s injuries and the continued dominance of younger players like current No. 1 Novak Djokovic make Federer’s chances of adding to his Grand Slam look slimmer and slimmer by the day.
After reaching the final in Brisbane and the semis of the Australian Open, he suffered a knee injury that required his first-ever surgery of any kind.
With just 11 wins from 15 matches to his name this year as the tour heads towards the half-way stage, Federer will certainly want to regain his winning ways during that all-too-brief grass swing.
Federer has reiterated the 2017 phrasing throughout a year of little tennis: Even at 34, even having now gone almost four years since his last major (Wimbledon, 2012), he remains “as motivated as ever”.
But the back proved more of a concern.
Skipping the French Open will give Federer more time to rest, recuperate and prepare for Wimbledon, the grass-court major tournament he has won a record-equaling seven times, and the Summer Olympics.
“It makes me sad and it’s scary. It’s weird to say Roger won’t be in Paris”, Wawrinka told the ATS news agency. “It’s sad for tennis, a big blow for his fans and especially for him as he’s had a very hard season”.
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Former world number one Caroline Wozniacki and top-10 Swiss star Belinda Bencic are both out injured.
