Roger Federer announces Doha return

The 20-time Major champion Roger Federer will enter the ATP 250 Qatar ExxonMobil Open in Doha in the second week of March, returning to competitive tennis for the first time in 14 months!

Roger hasn't played since the last year's Australian Open, experiencing knee injury and undergoing two surgeries in February and May. The Swiss announced to wrap up the previous season following that second operation, switching focus on 2021 and hoping to get back at 100% by the tame for Halle, Wimbledon, the Olympic Games and the US Open.

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"I am satisfied that I can say that I will try again in Doha. I have been injured for a long time, but Australia came a little early for me. I also wanted to come back to a smaller tournament, not the Australian Open. In Doha, the stands will probably be empty. Depending on how things go in Doha, I'll play another tournament. Otherwise, I'll go back to an additional training block with tennis and fitness.

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Everything happens with a view to Halle, Wimbledon, Olympic Games and the US Open. That is the right starting point. I like to play tennis for life; I gave a lot in rehab, had an operation, and walked on crutches. Then I invested a lot in fitness and tennis training. This is special for me after such a long year. I had to go through the bottom in the last few months, but I always enjoyed it and had a great team around me.

Now is the time to try again. I want to celebrate great victories again, and for that, I am ready to go a hard road. It was an interesting and pleasant year for me, totally calm, without traveling. I had to stay at home a lot because of the pandemic. I hope everything turns out this year. Otherwise, we have to see how things go with traveling. We'd have to take it day by day, just like other people," Roger Federer said.