Roger Federer has withdrawn from the French Open just hours after reaching the fourth round with a gruelling victory over Dominik Koepfer of Germany.
Federer, who has played only six matches in 17 months after undergoing two bouts of knee surgery last year, had been seeded to meet Novak Djokovic in the last eight.
The Swiss has made no secret of the fact that his priority this summer is Wimbledon, where he has a more realistic chance of adding to his tally of 20 majors, and with ninth seed Matteo Berrettini looming in the fourth round ahead of a probable encounter with Djokovic, he decided to cut his losses.
Federer cast doubt on his continued participation in the immediate aftermath of his 7-6 (7-5), 6-7 (3-7), 7-6 (7-4), 7-5 win over Koepfer on Saturday night. Having told reporters that he would have to see how his body reacted to the rigours of a contest that stretched over three hours and 35 minutes, the 39-year-old announced his withdrawal in a statement released on social media on Sunday afternoon.
“After discussions with my team, I’ve decided I will need to pull out of the French Open today,” said Federer. “After two knee surgeries and over a year of rehabilitation it’s important that I listen to my body and make sure I don’t push myself too quickly on my road to recovery.
“I am thrilled to have gotten three matches under my belt. There is no greater feeling than being back on court.”
Federer’s withdrawal is sure to raise questions about the wisdom of starting matches at 9pm local time. The introduction of a night session has potential to be a success, but with a Covid curfew in place the timing seems questionable. It was nearly 1am before Federer completed his match against Koepfer, and the eighth seed hinted at a possible withdrawal almost immediately.
“I need to decide if I keep on playing or not or is it not too much risk at this moment to keep on pushing, or is this just a perfect way to just take a rest?” said Federer.
“Because I don’t have the week in between here and Halle like normal to see what’s best now, if you count back from Wimbledon and so forth. It’s just a lot going on, but having a match like this, knowing I could have probably played a fifth set but not knowing how I will wake up tomorrow is interesting, to say the least.”
Guy Forget, the tournament director, said: “The Roland Garros tournament is sorry about the withdrawal of Roger Federer, who put up an incredible fight last night. We were all delighted to see Roger back in Paris, where he played three high-level matches. We wish him all the best for the rest of the season.”