The Canadian Open 2021 will start this Monday, August 9. While stars like Rafael Nadal will be playing in the Masters 1000 tournament, former World No. 1 and two-time champions Roger Federer won’t be present in Toronto this year, as the organization of the tennis event announced.
The 20-time Grand Slam champion has been on and off the tour for the last two years, since the pandemic. The Swiss underwent two knee surgeries last year, and returned to tour for the clay season. He competed at Roland Garros, where he reached the quarter-finals although he retired before playing Matteo Berrettini.
The soon to be 40-year old, his birthday it’s on August 8, then played Wimbledon, where he was eliminated by Hubert Hurkacs in the quarter-finals. The Swiss Maestro is expected to be later this summer in New York to try to win his eighth US Open. However, he would compete without much preparation.
Toronto Masters 2021: Why isn't Federer competing at the Canadian Open?
The organization of the Toronto Masters 2021 announced that Federer withdrew from the event due to a knee injury. Without much details, the press has assumed that it’s the same injury that forced him to retire from the Olympic Games.
When he announced his withdrawal from the Olympics, Federer tweeted: "During the grass-court season, I unfortunately experienced a setback with my knee.” Federer, World No. 9, has played five tournaments this year. He also withdrew from Cincinnati, which starts on August 14.
Federer has talked about his experience after the knee surgeries he had to undergo. The Swiss Maestro has said that he had been suffering some setbacks in the recovering process, and he had to be very conscious about his game now. No one knows for sure how much time he will continue playing, but Federer doesn’t talk about retiring just yet.
