Unsurprisingly, the tennis world will not see Roger Federer on the match court again until grass season begins.
Following his 3-6, 6-3, 7-6(4) loss to Thanasi Kokkinakis in the Miami Open second round this past weekend, Federer confirmed that we skip the clay-court swing for a second consecutive season. It worked out for him in 2017, when the well-rested Swiss dominated Wimbledon from start to finish–capturing the title without dropping a single set.
“It already did,” Federer said when asked if a discussion with his team regarding clay had started. “Yeah, I decided not to play.”
When asked if that includes the French Open, he quipped, “Yes. That’s what I said. The clay is the French, as well, yeah.”
The 36-year-old returned to No. 1 in the world by triumphing in Rotterdam last month, but his failure to defend titles in either Indian Wells or Miami means Rafael Nadal will be back in the top spot next week. Nadal has not played since the Australian Open due to a hip injury, but he gained enough ground on his arch rival simply because Federer earned just 610 combined points in Indian Wells and Miami after snagging the maximum 2000 last spring.
Roles could be reversed on clay, however, as Federer has a good chance of getting the No. 1 spot back without playing a match. He has no points to defend until June, whereas Nadal won Monte-Carlo (1000), Barcelona (500), Madrid (1000), and the French Open (2000). He also reached the Rome quarterfinals (180).
The 31-year-old Spaniard will be leading Federer by 100 points when the new rankings are released.
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