GENEVA (AP) — Roger
Federer does not expect to return from his latest knee surgery in time for next year’s tournament at Wimbledon.
The 40-year-old tennis great, who has won a record eight titles at the All England Club, said in an interview published Wednesday in Switzerland that it wouldn’t make a big difference to him if he was to return in 2022 or 2023.
“The truth is that I’d be incredibly surprised to play Wimbledon,” Federer told the Tribune de Genève daily. ”At 40 or 41 years old, it’s the same.”
Federer did say that he still wants to play in one more Grand Slam final.
“I believe in this kind of miracle,” said Federer, who has played in 31 major finals and won 20 of them. “In sport, miracles exist.”
Federer said the task of making a comeback would be clear only after several more months of steady rehabilitation from this latest operation in August.
Wimbledon starts on June 27, and Federer has not played on tour since a straight-set loss in the quarterfinals at the All England Club in July. Within a few weeks of that match, he underwent his third knee surgery in 18 months.
Federer has won 20 Grand Slam singles titles, tied with Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal for the most ever for a man.