‘I think the Australian Open is not a real possibility right now,’ says Roger Federer’s coach Ivan Ljubicic

P

pj80

Legend
Roger Federer’s coach Ivan Ljubicic has given an update on the 20-time Grand Slam winner’s fitness and chances of competing at the 2022 Australian Open.

Former world No 1 Federer has not played competitive tennis since losing in the quarter-final at Wimbledon as he opted to undergo a third operation on his knee.

In his last fitness update in September, the 40-year-old said the “worst is behind me”, but vowed not to rush his comeback, and Ljubicic has admitted that the tennis great is unlikely to play at the season-opening Grand Slam at Melbourne Park next year.

“I think there are very few chances, he is still recovering and knowing him, he wants to be sure he can play to win the tournament and be at 100%,” he told Stats Perform.
“So I think the Australian Open is not a real possibility right now. But he will go step by step because he is 40 years old now and he needs to be patient. He cannot recover as quickly as he used to.”

Six-time Australian Open winner Federer also missed this year’s edition and it remains to be seen if his Australian fans will see him live in action again, but there is good news for his global fan base.
Ljubicic is confident that tennis fans will see him in action again.
He added: “We have spoken and I can guarantee he wants to return to playing tennis. When he decides to stop he will retire, but I don’t think it’s going to happen all of a sudden.”

'Very few chances' Roger Federer will play at 2022 Australian Open (tennis365.com)
 
Purestriker

Purestriker

Legend
pj80 said:
Roger Federer’s coach Ivan Ljubicic has given an update on the 20-time Grand Slam winner’s fitness and chances of competing at the 2022 Australian Open.

Former world No 1 Federer has not played competitive tennis since losing in the quarter-final at Wimbledon as he opted to undergo a third operation on his knee.

In his last fitness update in September, the 40-year-old said the “worst is behind me”, but vowed not to rush his comeback, and Ljubicic has admitted that the tennis great is unlikely to play at the season-opening Grand Slam at Melbourne Park next year.

“I think there are very few chances, he is still recovering and knowing him, he wants to be sure he can play to win the tournament and be at 100%,” he told Stats Perform.
“So I think the Australian Open is not a real possibility right now. But he will go step by step because he is 40 years old now and he needs to be patient. He cannot recover as quickly as he used to.”

Six-time Australian Open winner Federer also missed this year’s edition and it remains to be seen if his Australian fans will see him live in action again, but there is good news for his global fan base.
Ljubicic is confident that tennis fans will see him in action again.
He added: “We have spoken and I can guarantee he wants to return to playing tennis. When he decides to stop he will retire, but I don’t think it’s going to happen all of a sudden.”

'Very few chances' Roger Federer will play at 2022 Australian Open (tennis365.com)
Click to expand...
Very few, as in zero chance.
 
FlamingCheeto

FlamingCheeto

Hall of Fame
dumb-and-dumber-comedy.gif
 
Red Rick

Red Rick

Bionic Poster
Sysyphus said:
doesn't matter

this is all gearing up toward an epic 4th round run at Wimbledon. That is the endgame here and we all know it.
Click to expand...
I honestly get vibes that he's basically chilling now and indeed will train it up for one more grass run to call it a day at Wimbledon. I don't think he has the Murray sort of recovery where he's seemingly pain free but just lacking the consistent level to be back in the top 20.
 
wangs78

wangs78

Legend
Sounds like his plan for 2022 is more or less identical to 2021. Skip the AO, start the season during the spring to get match fit (on a mix of hardcourts and clay), then try to do something special during the grass season. He will hope to stay healthy to be able to play Basel in the fall, after which i think he will hang up the racquet.
 
R

Realfan

Rookie
I hope Fed does more than play just Wimbledon. He deserves a truly great sendoff into retirement and, for me, that would include appearances at all four GS tournaments if possible. I guess that’s not meant to be and he probably does skip the French so perhaps a grass and hard court farewell.
 
terribleIVAN

terribleIVAN

Hall of Fame
In 2021, comebacking Fed could count on protected Covid ranking and first rd slam set-ups.

In 2022, only the later will be on the table for him - that is if he manages to successfully navigate through his training camp.

The big unknown is how his PR team will justify this latest comeback since he has a snowball chance in hell to win 4 real matches in a row and thus no more tournament wins for him.

What are they going to invent this time: that he enjoys playing tennis (he's probably under pain medication constantly while playing) ?

Tennis competition makes his operated knee feel better ?

He needs money to put his kids through college ?

ROFL
 
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Hitman

Hitman

Bionic Poster
terribleIVAN said:
In 2021, comebacking Fed could count on protected Covid ranking and first rd slam set-ups.

In 2022, only the later will be on the table for him - that is if he manages to successfully navigate through his training camp.

The big unknown is how his PR team will justify this latest comeback since he has a snowball chance in hell to win 4 real matches in a row and thus no more tournament wins for him.

What are they going to invent this time: he enjoys playing tennis ? (he's probably under pain medication constantly while playing)
Click to expand...

Why do they need to? We all know he is 40, coming back from multiple surgeries and is lacking match play. What exactly can they say? He of course is not going to say that he has no chance to win anymore, that is openly admitting defeat, no one wants to do that, as that impacts the whole return to play.
 
B

BumElbow

Professional
In 2022, Fed will play Halle and Wimbledon. And, maybe the Swiss Open. But, I don't see him playing much more than that. For Federer 2022 will be a brief farewell tour that has been much earned. I wish him well in his comeback even if it is only a final farewell tour. As always, it will be done with much class.
 
terribleIVAN

terribleIVAN

Hall of Fame
Hitman said:
Why do they need to? We all know he is 40, coming back from multiple surgeries and is lacking match play. What exactly can they say? He of course is not going to say that he has no chance to win anymore, that is openly admitting defeat, no one wants to do that, as that impacts the whole return to play.
Click to expand...

They need to come up with an explanation because Roger's always been a bona fida sore loser of grade 1 category, he proved it countless times.

What's the explanation for him losing every other match now, often against journeymen, and still enjoying it ?

Are we really supposed to forget what an obsessed, self-centered maniac he's always been on and off the court ?

He's mellowed all of a sudden and morphed into Edberg 2.0 ?

He likes now being the one pushed around ?
 
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The Fedfather

The Fedfather

Legend
“We have spoken and I can guarantee he wants to return to playing tennis. When he decides to stop he will retire, but I don’t think it’s going to happen all of a sudden.”

I don't think Ivan would be lying about something like that or that Roger would lie to him. Federer will try to return. No way to predict how it goes, but it's so good to know that we likely haven't seen the last of him.
 
Subway Tennis

Subway Tennis

G.O.A.T.
aldeayeah said:
I expect a Dubai, Halle, Wimbledon, Basel farewell tour.
Click to expand...

It's very sad that he is not coming out here to Australia.

If he were to retire this year, it would be a great shame if he didn't play one of the big North American tournaments. Hopefully he can play either Cincy or US Open.
 
ffw2

ffw2

Hall of Fame
zagor said:
Maybe you should urge Sabratha to get some professional help? Just a thought.
Click to expand...
And your thoughts are certainly appreciated.

If it's on your mind tho, would recommend that you communicate it directly to Sabratha. No need for a middle man here.
 
RaulRamirez

RaulRamirez

Legend
My predictions are often wrong, but I can't really imagine Wimbledon without him. I hope he has another good run in him, and goes out on his own terms (or as close as realistic).
 
Enga

Enga

Hall of Fame
If he wants to retire, he could probably do something like an announcement at the Laver Cup.

He could technically be considered retired already since he doesn't tour, though it's due to injuries.

I'm personally not really into those big final announcements, filled with tears and video footage from the past. All these guys who retired from pro tennis more often than not still revolve their life and their living around tennis.
 
BeatlesFan

BeatlesFan

Bionic Poster
This is literally the fifth thread on this. There's nothing to discuss, Fed is not playing the AO. The previous four threads addressed this.
 
ghostofMecir

ghostofMecir

Legend
terribleIVAN said:
They need to come up with an explanation because Roger's always been a bona fida sore loser of grade 1 category, he proved it countless times.

What's the explanation for him losing every other match now, often against journeymen, and still enjoying it ?

Are we really supposed to forget what an obsessed, self-centered maniac he's always been on and off the court ?

He's mellowed all of a sudden and morphed into Edberg 2.0 ?

He likes now being the one pushed around ?
Click to expand...

lol at the amount of hate in these posts. Federer must have really hurt you.
 
Red Rick

Red Rick

Bionic Poster
The Fedfather said:
“We have spoken and I can guarantee he wants to return to playing tennis. When he decides to stop he will retire, but I don’t think it’s going to happen all of a sudden.”

I don't think Ivan would be lying about something like that or that Roger would lie to him. Federer will try to return. No way to predict how it goes, but it's so good to know that we likely haven't seen the last of him.
Click to expand...
Damnit Fed stop being sensible so I can flame you
 
M

martinezownsclay

Hall of Fame
IMO Federer playing pro tennis again in any real capacity is not a realistic option. I hope he makes the smart choice at this point. Watching him play at Wimbledon was just painful, and really speaks to the terrible field today, particularly on a surface like grass which pretty much nobody is suited for anymore, that he even made the quarters.
 
M

martinezownsclay

Hall of Fame
RaulRamirez said:
My predictions are often wrong, but I can't really imagine Wimbledon without him. I hope he has another good run in him, and goes out on his own terms (or as close as realistic).
Click to expand...

A good run for Federer at this point, is realistically probably what happened at Wimbledon this year. He gets a terrible enough draw to make a quarter final. Sad as it is, that is pretty much the best note for him to go out on today. Physically he is done.
 
D

Deleted member 629564

Guest
An awkward thread title.
I thought Ljubicic thinks 2022 AO tournament is not going to happen.
 
ghostofMecir

ghostofMecir

Legend
terribleIVAN said:
Not hurt and no hate.
Just seeing him for what he truly is.

This comment comes from the other forum (not from me); ever since i've posted it here, mods from there erased it ; business as usual.

"Now that I am at it.
Roger is not what we see these days, polite, smiling, nice guy, that everyone adores.
No, that's not Roger.
Roger is that maniac, that egotistical piece of ****, psycho who was throwing tantrums, insulting opponents and refs and in general treating everyone around him as sub-humans.
I remember him from these day, and that's the Roger I see every time I look at him.
What we see nowadays is cleaned up, polished edition, approved by Nike PR department.
Millions of dollars were spent to erase the image of true Roger and create this picture-perfect version to sell more shoes and shirts.
But deep down, we who are old enough, we know that he never changed, because people do not change."
Click to expand...

You have zero self-awareness. Pathetic lol
 
S

Sampras-Bruguera 1993

Legend
Why even bother at this point if you're going to spend another season on injury reserves and quit tournaments halfway through? Go play Mac, Roddick, Courier, Borg, Pete and Andre in the Seniors tour. Theres some good money to be made there and some potentially fun matchups. Especially once Nadal joins up. Ive been wanting to see Sampras/Nadal go at it for years. Hell these matches will draw more than GenMUG slam finals like Zverev-Med. LOL. I would like to see some of these great matchups before all their body parts finallly break down
 
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