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Roger Federer to miss remainder of 2020 season after injury setback

Roger Federer announced on Wednesday that a setback to his injured knee will require him to miss the remainder of the 2020 season.

Federer, currently ranked No. 4 in the world, posted the announcement on Twitter.

“Dear Fans, I hope you are staying safe and healthy. A few weeks ago, having experienced a setback during my initial rehabilitation, I had to have an additional quick arthroscopic procedure on my right knee. Now, much like I did leading up to the 2017 season, I plan to take the necessary time to be 100% ready to play at my highest level. I will be missing my fans and the tour dearly but, I will look forward to seeing everyone back on tour at the start of the 2021 season. All the best, Roger”

Federer, 38, initially had arthroscopic surgery on his right knee in February, shortly after his semifinals loss to Novak Djokovic at the Australian Open. The recovery time would have required him to miss every tournament through the French Open — the entire clay court season. With the tour being suspended in March due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and numerous tournaments either canceled or rescheduled, it was possible that he could have returned from his knee injury without missing anything.

Roger Federer will miss the remainder of the 2020 season while he recovers from a knee injury. (Photo by RODGER BOSCH / AFP) (Photo by RODGER BOSCH/AFP via Getty Images)
Roger Federer will miss the remainder of the 2020 season while he recovers from a knee injury. (Photo by RODGER BOSCH / AFP) (Photo by RODGER BOSCH/AFP via Getty Images)

Unfortunately, Federer’s injury setback required him to have an additional arthroscopic procedure on his knee. With the tour season shortened due to the COVID-19 pandemic, he’d rather spend his time recovering and getting fully healthy for the 2021 season.

Federer did something similar in 2016. He sat out the second half of the year after having surgery on a balky left knee and returned with authority in January 2017 by defeating Rafael Nadal and winning the Australian Open. He also sat out clay court season in 2017 and 2018 to rest up for Wimbledon and the U.S. Open.

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