‘Every player, including Roger Federer, has committed to Australian Open,’ confirms tournament chief

Australian Open
Roger Federer waving

He is yet to return to full match fitness following a long injury layoff, but Roger Federer has confirmed he will play at the 2021 Australian Open, according to tournament director Craig Tiley.

Federer, whose last competitive match was at the 2020 Melbourne Grand Slam, underwent two operations on his right knee last year and was initially confident he would return to action at the season-opening major in Australia.

However, he admitted a fortnight ago that he was “in a race against time” to be fit for the Australian Open before his coach Ivan Ljubicic revealed this week that he is back in training.

Roger Federer training in Dubai as he steps up his return from injury

With the Australian Open pushed back to February 8-21, Federer has been given a few more weeks to get match with Tiley revealing the 20-time Grand Slam preferred the later start date.

“We have a commitment from every player in the world to be in Australia. It’s the start of the season, and anything can happen with that entry list, but the commitment is there. Every player, including Roger Federer, has committed,” he said.

“We have been in touch with him and his team and it’s been three days now, he’s hit for the first time in Dubai. He’s in his normal pre-season training routine.

He added: “He did say to us that February 8 was a more suitable date for him in terms of preparing for the Australian Open. But a lot will depend on how he responds to his surgery in the next two to three weeks of training.”

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