Fabio Fognini believes he still has a lot to offer

The 33-year-old Fabio Fognini finished the previous season inside the top-20 after keeping his 2019 points, scoring only six wins in 2020 and undergoing arthroscopic surgery on both ankles on May 30.

As was expected, Fabio made a slow start when the action kicked off again in August, losing four out of five matches and returning to the practice court ahead of 2021. Starting all over, Fognini will try to reach the top again in the season ahead of us, choosing a former world no. 8 Alberto Mancini as his coach. The Italian made a winning start in Antalya despite an evident struggle, feeling no pain and wishing for more matches in the upcoming months that would shape his game and make him competitive again.

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"I know that sounds weird from me, those kinds of words. When you get surgery, especially at 33, you never know what's going to happen. I was also thinking, 'What happens if I don't feel great and it starts to feel bad like before?' But everybody told me that I had to be calm and patient. I knew that I wasn't at my 100% during this period of the clay-court season, so I had to accept every result coming on my way back.

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I know that I have to suffer a lot because it never comes easy. I need these kinds of tests, especially at the beginning of the year. I'm happy because every match for me is essential, especially if I won a tight one, like 6-4, 7-6 against a qualifier. I have to look at the result, but I also look at myself; I need this feeling again. I know that my tennis always gives me an answer. I need to run and be free of pain.

There was no pain, and I felt great about that. I need time, and my game will come back again. I was with my family for the holidays. I was practicing, sleeping at home, joking with my baby, so I think that's the most important thing. Still, tennis is my job, and I feel that I still have a lot to accomplish before I retire," Fabio Fognini said.