ATP Cup TD: 'Roger Federer wants to spend time with family, we respect that'

The first edition of the ATP Cup starts on Friday, with 24 countries battling for the notable team crown at the beginning of the season. Players will have the opportunity to shape up their game ahead of the Australian Open and also to take the massive prize money and up to 750 ATP points. Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, Dominic Thiem, Daniil Medvedev, Stefanos Tsitsipas, Alexander Zverev, Roberto Bautista Agut, Gael Monfils and David Goffin will lead the action in Brisbane, Perth and Sydney between January 3-12, together with other notable players from the top-100. Matteo Berrettini, Kei Nishikori, Stan Wawrinka will all skip the action, along with Roger Federer who has decided to take more rest and work on the practice court ahead of the Australian Open.

Roger hasn't played an official match since the semi-final loss at the ATP Finals in November, embracing small Tour in South America and Mexico between November 19-24 and heading to China with Zverev and the Bryan Brothers last weekend for more exhibition matches and exciting time both on and off the court. The Swiss will make a return in Melbourne from January 20, seeking the first Major crown in two years after conquering the first Major of the season in 2017 and 2018. The ATP Cup tournament director Tom Larner understands Roger's decision to stay away from the inaugural team event, praising the field and announcing thrilling clashes from start to finish between the established champions and upcoming stars.

"Roger made the decision to spend some time with his family and he is obviously a lot more conscious of how much he's playing," ATP Cup tournament director Tom Larner said. "For everything Roger has given to the sport, we have to accept that. If you look at a depth of the field that we have, all the champions and some really exciting up-and-comers like Stefanos Tsitsipas, Alexander Zverev, Denis Shapovalov and Felix Auger-Aliassime; we are really thrilled with the field."

from Tennis World USA https://ift.tt/2MLoMTQ