Roger Federer shuts down comeback talk before US Open return

NEW YORK — “No, no, no, no. No, not at all.”

With that brief, definitive answer, Roger Federer put an end to any speculation about making a return full-time to tennis, even as a wild card.

“Thanks for asking. I wasn’t sure if the question was going to get asked, but I’m happy you did so I can clarify in case anybody thought,” he said during a press conference on Monday, Aug. 24 before a Tuesday exhibition against Andy Roddick, part of Roger Federer: An Icon Returns to New York event at the US Open. “I’m too busy. And the body is done.”

But you couldn’t tell by the way Federer looks, as the 45-year-old seems as if he can still compete for some Grand Slams.

The 20-time Grand Slam champion will also play a doubles set with John McEnroe against Andre Agassi and Roddick, the last American male to win a Grand Slam event. From there, it’s on to Newport, Rhode Island, on Saturday, Aug. 29, where he will be one of the inductees into the International Tennis Hall of Fame.

While it will be an exhibition, Federer says he hopes to put on a show and to be respectful to the sport, hoping not to “hit the dropshots on every second ball.”

His return to Arthur Ashe Stadium is a long time coming. His last match at Flushing Meadows was a five-set loss to Grigor Dimitrov in the 2019 quarterfinals. He subsequently started to have issues with his knees in 2020, having three knee surgeries in a span of seven months.

By then, Federer knew he couldn’t compete at a level that would sustain excellence in the sport.

“The knee can’t do it anymore. It’s tired,” Federer said. “The mind can’t be patient even more and wait for another couple years and see what happens.”

Even after a long absence, the five-time US Open champion still looks forward to embracing the crowds of New York.

“Yeah, it’s nerve-racking, to be honest. I haven’t played a single set in, I don’t know, Hurkacz at Wimbledon maybe, so it’s been five years,” he said. “I don’t know how it’s going to go tomorrow, so there is a lot of uncertainty, but a lot of happiness that I can return to Arthur Ashe, a place where I have had so many beautiful moments,” Federer said.

“They gave me an ovation because they saw me on the big screen, but I just feel, like, tomorrow and I guess today, as well, and Monday next week, it really gives me a true opportunity to say thank you and goodbye, which I think is important for some,” Federer said. “It’s a nice thing to do, for sure.”

So what can the crowd at Arthur Ashe expect from Federer and the rest of his co-stars?

“I feel like my body is ready for tomorrow, but again, we’re not playing best-of-five,” he joked.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Roger Federer shuts down comeback talk before US Open return