Roger Federer won’t go for a 21st Grand Slam title at the French Open, with the 36-year-old Swiss great saying he’ll skip the clay-court season. The Swiss star made the announcement after he was knocked out of the Miami Open by Thanasi Kokkinakis – a qualifier ranked 175 in the world. Federer lost 3-6, 6-3, 7-6 (7/4) to Australian qualifier Thanasi Kokkinakis in the second round of the Miami Masters.
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Federer, who won French Open in 2009, also pulled out of the tournament in 2016 and again last year citing the need to avoid playing on clay in order to prolong his career.
So now we know…
No clay for @RogerFederer in 2018#MiamiOpen pic.twitter.com/kT5i4KVdqb
— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) March 24, 2018
On losing his world number one position, Federer – the defending Miami champion – said: “I deserve it after this match. I feel so bad.”
After the defeat, he added: “I decided not to play the clay season.”
Federer, who won his 20th Grand Slam at the Australian Open in January, began in typically assured style but was worn down by Australian qualifier Kokkinakis, 21, who won in two hours 21 minutes. It was Federer’s second loss in six days – he saw a 17-match unbeaten run come to an end in a gruelling match with Juan Martin del Potro in Indian Wells last weekend.
In Miami, he was up against another angular opponent in Kokkinakis, who used a vicious top-spin forehand to devastating effect.
“It felt like every time I had chances, something bad happened – wrong decision making by me, good decisions from him. It’s disappointing, I don’t know why I could never get to a level I was happy with,” he said.
