Roger Federer Confirms That He Will Play in the French Open

Swiss tennis star Roger Federer announced on his Twitter account on Sunday that he will be participating in the 2021 French Open, and will be preparing for it on home soil at the Geneva Open in Switzerland on May 16-22, 2021.

Hi everyone!

Happy to let you know that I will play Geneva🇨🇭 and Paris 🇫🇷. Until then I will use the time to train. Can’t wait to play in Switzerland again. ❤️🚀

— Roger Federer (@rogerfederer) April 18, 2021

The Swiss Maestro will aim to win a 104th career title in Geneva and then head to Paris for the French Open which is scheduled to begin on May 30th. Federer’s lone win at Roland Garros came in 2009 and he lost to rival Rafael Nadal in the semifinals two years ago, before missing last year’s tournament.

Return From a 13-Month Absence

Federer returned from a 13-month absence at the Doha Open last March, defeating Dan Evans in three sets. Despite being a heavy betting favorite in the best tennis betting sites, the Swiss Maestro lost his next match, also in three sets, to Nikoloz Basilashvili after failing to convert a match point.

Prior to that, Federer had not played since January 2020, when he lost to Novak Djokovic in the semifinals of the 2020 Australian Open. After the tournament, he underwent arthroscopic knee surgery and planned to sit out until the end of the grass season. However, he went under the knife again in June and ended up shutting down his 2020 season.

Last December, while accepting a sports award in Switzerland, Federer hinted that he won’t be ready to play Melbourne and that he may have played his final match. Despite hinting at retirement, he continued to work out and revealed his plans to play for the Olympics and Wimbledon.

Nadal Wins 13th French Open Title

Last year, Spaniard Rafael Nadal extended his record with a 13th French Open title, after defeating Novak Djokovic in straight sets and is currently the solid odds on favorite to win this year’s edition as well with online sportsbook SportsBetting.ag listing Rafa as a -125 betting favorite as of April 17th. And you can’t argue with the oddsmakers there.

Aside from being the winningest player at Roland Garros, Nadal has won the last four installments of the French Open and has taken the Paris grand slam in nine out of the last 11 seasons. Since he started playing at the tournament in 2005, Nadal hasn’t been victorious only thrice, including once when he pulled out due to injury. His overall record at Roland Garros? 100-2 or a 98% winning percentage.

Andrey Rublev is next on the odds board at +200 while world number 1 Djokovic is third at +225. Meanwhile, 2020 U.S. Open winner Dominic Thiem is 4th at +400 while Federer is tied with world no. 2 Daniil Medvedev at a longshot of +1600 odds. But winning the French Open may be the last thing on Federer’s mind. He’s using the clay season to prepare for Wimbledon where his 8th wins are a record. The All England Club tournament is slated for June 28 to July 11.