Roger Federer's Australian Open withdrawal doesn’t have to include fitness alone

For the first time since 1999, Roger Federer will not compete in the Australian Open main draw after failing to recover from a knee injury in time.

The 39-year-old Swiss hasn't played since the Australian Open last January, reaching the semi-final after a roller coaster ride and tough challenges against John Millman and Tennys Sandgren. Roger lost to Novak Djokovic in straight sets in his last official match so far, undergoing knee surgery a few weeks later and repeating it in May. Following the second surgery, Roger decided to put the rest of the season aside and focus on 2021, working hard on a comeback.

In October, the Swiss hit the practice court and moved to Dubai ten days ago with his coach Ivan Ljubicic. As was expected, Roger has failed to recover in time for the upcoming Australian Open that starts on February 8, needing more time on the practice court and hoping to return at the end of February or the beginning of March.

Alongside his fitness after such a long break - the most extended one in Roger's career - there's another critical issue that would always keep Roger away from Melbourne Park. With strict health measures, the Swiss would not have been able to take his family with him to Melbourne, which isn't something he was ready to accept.

With two-week quarantine and one week of competition ahead of the Australian Open, Roger would have spent four or five weeks without his wife and kids, and that wasn't an option at this stage of his career.