ZURICH: Swiss tennis great Roger Federer on Thursday announced that he will be giving the French Open a miss this year after undergoing a knee surgery. The 38-year-old said in a social media post that he had an arthroscopic surgery on Wednesday in Switzerland.
As a result, he will be missing a number of tournaments, including the Indian Wells and the French Open and stated that he is gearing up for the grass-court tournaments that come after the clay-court Grand Slam.
"My right knee has been bothering me for a little while. I hoped it would go away, but after an examination, and discussion with my team, I decided to have arthroscopic surgery in Switzerland yesterday," said Federer.
"After the procedure, the doctors confirmed it was the right thing to have done and are very confident of a full recovery. As a result, I will, unfortunately, have to miss Dubai, Indian Wells, Bogota, Miami and the French Open. I am grateful for everyone's support. I can't wait to be back playing again soon, see you on the grass!"
Last year, Federer had reached the semi-final of Rolland Garros where he lost in straight sets to Rafael Nadal, who was on his way to a record-extending 12th title. It was Federer's first appearance at the French Open since 2015.