Greg Rusedski: 'Roger Federer can't win Australian Open and Roland Garros'

The 20-time Major champion had to skip almost the entire 2020, struggling with a knee injury and playing only one tournament. The 39-year-old is working on a comeback, training in Dubai with his coach Ivan Ljubicic and doing his best to recover in time for the Australian Open that starts on February 8. Greg Rusedski believes that Roger can't win the Australian Open or Roland Garros later in the new season, switching focus to Wimbledon and the Olympic Games, his main goals in 2021. Rusedski is sure that Roger can win matches in Melbourne or Paris, but it would be too much for him to seek titles, as he can't endure the best-of-five encounters in the comeback event in February or on clay in June. Following that knee injury in 2016, Roger made a strong comeback a year later, winning three Major crowns between the Australian Open 2017-2018, increasing his tally to 20 and challenging Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic to repeat that.

Roger turned 38 in 2019 and was still among the world's best players, winning four ATP titles and securing the 28th Masters 1000 crown in Miami. The Swiss wasted two match points in the Wimbledon final versus Novak Djokovic, still doing enough to wrap up the year in the top-3 behind two main opponents. Federer kicked off the 2020 campaign in Melbourne, battling past John Millman from the verge of defeat in the third round and fending off seven match points against Tennys Sandgren in the quarters. With not much left in the tank, Federer made a great start versus Novak Djokovic in the semis before losing in straight sets, finishing his last official match of the season and undergoing knee surgery in February.

Roger Federer is working on a comeback after a challenging 2020 season.

Roger needed another in May as he couldn't take the pain away, deciding to miss the rest of the season and prepare everything for a fresh start in 2021. If he fails to recover in time for the Australian Open, Roger will focus on Wimbledon, the Olympic Games and the US Open as his prime targets in the season ahead of us, eager to return at his best in the year when he turns 40.

"Roger spends more and more time on the practice court, increasing the training pace. I'm curious to see how much he can push in the upcoming months. I think he has one more year left in his legs, possibly two, but not more than that. Thus, Wimbledon and the Olympic Games should be his prime targets in 2021. I can't see him winning the Australian Open or Roland Garros; those asks will be too big for him. He can play well at both Majors but can't conquer the title," Greg Rusedski said.

from Tennis World USA https://ift.tt/3nQX3BH