"It would be a pity if he made a fool of himself" - Ion Tiriac on Roger Federer's return to action
Tennis superstar Roger Federer's impending return to action has been one of the biggest talking points in the sport. The Swiss maestro has not played on the tour since Wimbledon last year due to a knee injury, for which Federer underwent a third surgery.
In an interview, Ion Tiriac, a businessman and former coach of Boris Becker, spoke about Roger Federer's return to action later this year. Tiriac believes that it is not wise for Federer to return to the highest level at this age as he believes the new generation can beat him.
"If you like tennis, fine, but being competitive at 40... oh, no. There are people like Alcatraz (Alcaraz). Or like (Holger) Rune, who may be a player, but has a bit of trouble, the mother, this and the other, but the ball hits very well. The new generation is coming, for sure. You can play tennis for fun. That would be a great thing. Although, be careful: it would be a pity if he made a fool of himself," Tiriac said.
Tiriac believes that such a lengthy spell of absence from the tour will pose problems for the 20-time Grand Slam champion. He also lambasted Federer's decision to retire from his fourth-round clash against Matteo Berrettini at the French Open last year in order to prepare better for Wimbledon.
"I see it as danger, because so long without playing... And he also makes mistakes. Coming to Roland Garros last year and leaving saying no, he wants to prepare Wimbledon... How can he afford to tell a Grand Slam like Roland Garros, that he is going to abandon it for Wimbledon? Go to Wimbledon directly, and that's it," Tiriac concluded.
1) Hay algo en el tenis que, para un periodista, debería ser obligatorio hacer cada tanto: entrevistar a Ion Tiriac. Lo hicimos en @_claymagazine, y el resultado nos asombró incluso a nosotros. Algunas frases destacadas en este hilo👇
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Roger Federer drops out of top-50 of the ATP rankings
After being on the sidelines for nearly a year, Roger Federer finds himself out of the top-50 in the ATP rankings for the first time since 2000. The Swiss maestro is currently ranked World No. 68 and will fall even further as he is set to lose points he gained from playing Halle and Wimbledon last year.
Next week, for the first time since Jun. 12, 2000, Roger Federer will officially leave the ATP top 50.
The only ATP points remaining are 2021 Wimbledon's. https://t.co/2oU7zJHv8J
However, the wait for his ardent fans to finally see the maestro in action is nearly over as Roger Federer is set to return to action in the Laver Cup. He has also confirmed his participation at the Swiss Indoors this year using a protected ranking.