The PeRFect Time To Have Surgery

At the start of February Roger Federer underwent arthroscopic surgery on his right knee and stated that he would be out until the start of June to coincide with the beginning of the grass court swing.

Fans of the Swiss Maestro and the tennis world alike were left in shock by the news, considering he had a considerable amount of points to defend from this time last season.

In 2019 Federer won a 100th career title in Dubai, finished runner up in Indian Wells and was victorious in Miami before quarterfinal appearances in Madrid and Rome with a semifinal run at Roland Garros rounding out his second quarter of the year. This culminates in 3,180 points to defend.

This meant that the 38-year-old would have almost certainly re-commenced his career outside the top eight on the ATP Tour, possibly even top ten, which would have made his quest for a ninth Wimbledon crown much more difficult, even with the tournament’s seeding concessions.

However, along comes Covid-19, a horrific virus that has caused large quantities of people to lose their lives globally resulting in the suspension of all mass gatherings and almost all sporting events around the world.

The ATP and WTA have suspended all play until June 8th this year and all ranking points have been frozen until tennis resumes again.

For the other players on both tours this is the epitome of a disaster, but for Federer it is the furthest thing from it.

The only points that the 20-time Grand Slam champion will lose in this period is 500, which dropped off at the culmination of his absence in Dubai and caused him to drop from three to four in the ATP rankings.

To add further bonus, Federer will also most likely be able to play at Roland Garros with the tournament’s impromptu postponement despite confirming his participation at the Laver Cup also taking place at that time.

With a major on at the same week, most would think that the Laver Cup will bow to pressure and postpone until after the French Open.

It means that Federer will now be able to play on the red dirt of Paris and take part in all four Slams in 2020, should they all go ahead.

On a final note, the Swiss legend has also inherited his famous ‘RF’ logo back from Nike that he has been unable to wear on his Uniqlo apparel since making the switch in 2018.

All of this would be the furthest thing from Federer’s mind, but it is worth pointing out that he is not just the GOAT on court, but he seems to be the GOAT off it, timing his surgery to utter peRFection.

Until tennis does resume, we at The First Serve want everyone to adhere to rules, wash your hands and stay safe. This too shall pass.