'Realistic' Federer admits future in doubt after surgery

Roger Federer is going to miss the US Open and beryllium sidelined for months due to the fact that helium needs a 3rd cognition connected his close knee, a process helium said volition permission him with "a glimmer of hope" that helium tin instrumentality to competition.

Federer announced the quality Sunday via a video connection connected Instagram.

"I've been doing a batch of checks with the doctors, arsenic well, connected my knee, getting each the accusation arsenic I wounded myself further during the grass-court play and Wimbledon," Federer said.

"Unfortunately they told maine for the medium- to long-term, to consciousness better, I volition request surgery, truthful I decided to bash it. I volition beryllium connected crutches for galore weeks and past besides retired of the crippled for galore months."

The 40-year-old Federer, who has 20 Grand Slam singles titles to stock the men's grounds with Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic, acknowledged determination was a accidental his playing vocation could beryllium over, but helium said helium would rehab the genu with the extremity of making different comeback.

"I privation to beryllium healthy. I privation to beryllium moving astir later, arsenic well, again, and I privation to springiness myself a glimmer of hope, also, to instrumentality to the circuit successful immoderate signifier oregon form," Federer said. "I americium realistic, don't get maine wrong. I cognize however hard it is astatine this property close present to bash different country and effort it."

Federer missed much than a twelvemonth of enactment aft archetypal having his genu repaired soon aft the 2020 Australian Open successful February of that year. He had a follow-up process that June.

He returned to Grand Slam enactment astatine the French Open successful precocious May and past pulled retired of the tourney aft 3 victories. His astir caller lucifer was a nonaccomplishment astatine the Wimbledon quarterfinals past month, and helium cited the genu wounded successful withdrawing from the Tokyo Olympics.

The season's past Grand Slam tournament, the US Open, starts August 30 successful New York. Nadal is dealing with a ft injury, and Djokovic pulled retired of tune-up tournaments, saying helium needed to remainder and recuperate pursuing the Olympics, wherever helium failed to triumph a medal.

Federer won 16 of his Grand Slam titles betwixt 2003 and 2010 but remained astatine oregon adjacent the apical of the athletics into his precocious 30s. He won the Australian Open and Wimbledon during a resurgent 2017 and defended his rubric astatine Melbourne Park successful 2018, his astir caller Grand Slam championship. In 2019 helium mislaid a five-set classical to Djokovic successful the Wimbledon final.

Federer's spot successful the US Open main gully volition spell to Tallon Griekspoor of the Netherlands, the US Tennis Association said. American Mackie McDonald would beryllium the adjacent antheral to determination into the tract if determination is different withdrawal.

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