"We have already given up on Serena Williams, I hope not to see a repeat"- Adriano Panatta on Roger Federer's comeback
Former French Open champion Adriano Panatta has acknowledged that Roger Federer is one of his favorite tennis players. He has also compared Federer's Wimbledon comeback to Serena Williams' and said he hoped that the Swiss would be able to avoid a repeat of Williams' misfortune.
Roger Federer withdrew from the 2022 Wimbledon Championships and has been on the sidelines for over a year after losing to Hubert Hurkacz in the quarterfinals of SW19 last year. Since then, the Swiss has undergone knee surgery and has been resting, rehabilitating and training for a comeback to the tour and has kept everyone updated on his injury and recovery via social media.
However, after being on the sidelines for a long time now, the 40-year-old recently announced that he will participate in his home tournament in Basel later this year and the 2022 Laver Cup, where he will join hands with Rafael Nadal in doubles.
👀🔜🇪🇺🇪🇺🇪🇺 twitter.com/LaverCup/statu…
In light of his attempted comeback, Panatta disclosed his admiration for Roger Federer in a recent interview with the Italian newspaper La Gazzetta dello Sport. He also equated the Swiss player's comeback to Serena Williams', whose run at SW19 was ended by Harmony Tan in the first round.
"Roger is one of the reasons why I continued to love tennis," Panatta said. "I wish him happy, he has an amazing career behind him and a wonderful family next to him. But there is a time for everything: we have already given up with Serena Williams, I hope not to see a repeat."
The Italian added further detail and made a comparison between Nick Kyrgios' actions on the court and one of his own episodes from his playing days. He also believes that Nick Kyrgios' problems will be resolved by someone in the locker room rather than on the court.
"He is a great talent there is no doubt, but he must understand that disrespecting his opponents is hateful," Panatta said. "Once in the Davis Cup I did a service from under Lendl and I regretted it all my life: it is not done. I believe that in the end someone with him will fix things, not on the pitch but in the locker room."
Roger Federer hints at a Wimbledon comeback
Roger Federer recently attended a special event to commemorate Center Court's 100th anniversary. There, he stated that despite missing a year due to a knee injury, he expects to play Wimbledon "one more time."
“I hope I can come back one more time. I’ve missed it here,” Federer said.
The Moment Roger Federer returned to Wimbledon‘s Center Court. #Federer https://t.co/9T5SWKYRnm
However, before that, in September, Federer and Rafael Nadal will join hands to represent Team Europe in London. In their sole previous doubles match, Federer and Nadal defeated American combo Jack Sock and Sam Querrey in three sets in the 2017 inaugural Laver Cup. All four editions have been won by Europe.