A power-packed tennis season so far has seen players deal with injuries, fatigue, retirements, and many more. Regardless, even amidst this chaos, some have maintained their level of greatness, making one strong comeback after another. Reflecting over the same is gold medalist, Andrey Rublev, who can’t get enough of Roger Federer and his incredible Wimbledon return.
Recently crowned doubles champion, Rublev was all praise for the Swiss legend. Having been at the heart of the news for a while now, he takes the attention off himself, shedding the light on Federer’s heroics at the 2021 Wimbledon championship. The Russian was in awe of Roger’s mighty show of class, as he returned to the sport, getting past a herd of challenges.
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“It’s something unreal” – Andrey Rublev
Roger appeared last at the 2020 Australian Open. However, after a few unprecedented surgeries, he returned to the court and has played in 13 matches since. Out of those 13, five games were played on the grass courts that saw Roger in the quarter-finals of the English tournament. Speaking of the same, Rublev opens up on the greatness of the ‘G.O.A.T’ to pull something like this off.
He said, “It’s something unreal. It’s something unbelievable that he’s the only one who made it. I’m not really surprised because this is Roger. He breaks so many records. He’s one of the best tennis players in history.”?
Andrey Rublev on Federer: "It's something unreal. It's something unbelievable that he's the only one who made it. I'm not really surprised because this is Roger. He breaks so many records. He's one of the best tennis players in history." #NBO21
— Max Gao (@MaxJGao) August 8, 2021
Despite Roger’s incredible comeback, his return ended in heartbreak for many. The 20-time Grand Slam champion cruised his way into the tournament until being toppled out in shocking style. For the first time in his career, he was bageled out, courtesy of Poland’s Hubert Hurkacz. The unbelievable defeat had the tennis world mourning; they couldn’t help but wonder if this was it for the 40-year-old legend.
Watch this story:?How Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, Serena Williams, and Others Travel
Another disappointing comeback for Roger Federer
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The loss at Wimbledon followed with a set of injuries that saw Roger miss out on the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. Undoubtedly, fans were devastated as the rumors of a retirement grew stronger. However, he canceled out any such speculations as he announced his appearance at the Cincinnati and Toronto-based events.
Fans at the Western and Southern Open, and definitely the Rogers Cup too, were beyond ecstatic, learning of Federer’s participation at the tournaments. However, they would once again have to settle for disappointment as Roger recently announced his withdrawal from both the competitions. Courtesy of another injury, Roger won’t be appearing back on-court anytime soon.
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As the knee issue continues to linger over the former World No.1, retirement stays still at the door, waiting to make an inevitable entry. Regardless, can Roger fight past the uninvited guest and make it to the 2021 US Open?
Read more: Roger Federer Responds to Italian Pasta Giant Barilla as They Wish Him on His Special Day