Roger Federer has been sidelined since the last year’s Wimbledon. The Swiss underwent three knee surgeries since February 2020, playing only a couple of tournaments last year and hoping for a fresh start later this year.
Roger entered the Roland Garros and Wimbledon last year, scoring seven wins and reaching the last eight in London. That result came after the Swiss withdrew from Roland Garros following the third round, deciding to skip the Matteo Berrettini clash and focus on the upcoming grass swing.
Federer made a winning start in Paris a year ago, toppling Denis Istomin and Marin Cilic to find himself in the last 32. Roger had to work hard to advance into the last 16 following a 7-6, 6-7, 7-6, 7-5 triumph over the German Dominik Koepher in three hours and 35 minutes.
Roger and Dominik met on the Court Philippe-Chatrier during the night session without the crowd to support them. They pushed each other to the limits, and the Swiss prevailed after an epic battle thanks to a late break in set number four.
Instead of preparing for the next round, Roger decided to withdraw and preserve his knee for the grass swing. The Swiss veteran missed 13 months due to a knee injury and two surgeries in February and May 2020, stepping on the court only three times in the past 15 months ahead of Paris.
Roger Federer withdrew from the last year’s Roland Garros after a marathon.
The 27-year-old German threw everything he had at Roger on an empty Court Philippe-Chatrier, firing 55 winners and 40 unforced errors and pushing the legend to the limits.
Roger won one point more and sealed the deal with a late break in the fourth set to become the oldest player to reach the fourth round at Majors since 1978! The opening set lasted for over an hour, and Koepfer saved a set point at 4-5 to prolong it.
Federer grabbed the tie break 7-5 with a volley winner at the net for an early advantage and a boost. The second set kicked off with four breaks in the opening six games, and they served well in the second part to introduce another tie break.
Dominik claimed it 7-3 following Roger’s backhand mistakes to level the overall score after two hours. Firing from all cylinders, the lower-ranked player produced three commanding holds early in the third set and broke Roger in the opening game to forge a 4-2 gap.
Determined to fight, Federer pulled the break back at 3-4 when his rival netted a backhand and created a set point at 6-5. Koepfer saved it to reach a tie break, and Federer clinched it 7-4 after a crafty drop shot that sent him two sets to one in front at midnight.
They traded breaks in games three and four in set number four to stay neck and neck, and Roger served to stay in at 4-5. The Swiss produced a hold at 30 and broke Dominik at 15 a few minutes later for the crucial lead. Serving for the victory, the 2009 winner held at 15 to seal the deal and celebrate the 365th Major victory in style before leaving Paris.
