The 20-time Grand Slam champion is feeling “pumped up” as he is targeting to reach the second week of Wimbledon.
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On the back of his second-round exit at Noventi Open, Roger Federer is ready to shake off the disappointment as he focuses on reaching the second week at Wimbledon. The 20-time Grand Slam champion is still making his way back to full fitness following two knee surgeries. The upcoming grasscourt Grand Slam will only be his fifth tournament back in action since the start of the year. Following an opening loss at the Gonet Geneva Open, he had to withdraw from Roland Garros in the fourth round. Most recently at the Noventi Open, where he has lifted the trophy 10 times, Federer was beaten in the second round by Felix Auger-Aliassime despite taking a one-set lead.
“I had a mental moment where I was just not happy with how things were going in the match,” Federer said in a pre-tournament press conference. “When things derailed mentally for me, I was already down a break in the third. You might argue I would have maybe lost anyway. It was Felix’s good play that got me there. [But] it was definitely also, there’s ways to lose and a standard I set for myself and how I go about things.”
In Halle, Federer looked to be in complete control before the 20-year-old Canadian clawed back into the mix to win the match 4-6, 6-3, 6-2. The Swiss maestro is confident that it will not happen in Wimbledon as he tries to take the positives from the last few weeks. Now he is focused on reaching the second week in Wimbledon, a tournament he has won eight times, which is more than any other player in the Open Era.
“The good thing now, looking back, is I know it will not happen here because I’m ready, I’m excited, I’m pumped up. I know I can do so much better,” Federer said. “I think I’ve got to take the positives out of these last few weeks, that I’m actually here at Wimbledon right now and I have a chance.
“I know if I get rolling, I get into the second week – which is the goal here right now, that I get stronger and stronger as every match goes by – I believe it’s very much possible. I come here feeling mentally strong rather [than] the last set I played in Halle, which was clearly not the standard I like.”
Federer was joined by two-time champion Andy Murray on the practice courts at the All England Club. Murray is competing with a wild card as he makes his own comeback after undergoing hip surgeries.
“It was very nice sharing the court again with Andy,” he added. “We were trying to think when [was] the last time we shared a practice court together. I thought it was the Australian Open in 2005 or something. He thought it was maybe Rome in 2006. We didn’t do it for a long time. I hope he can go deep here, have a nice run. Same for me. I think we always back our chances on this surface. But it was great spending time on the court again with Andy. It’s nice to see him out there.”
The 20-time Grand Slam champion will face Adrian Mannarino in the first round of Wimbledon. Federer is the sixth seed at Wimbledon, which will start on 28 June (Monday).
