Here are we again with the same question is Wimbledon Roger Federer’s last chance to win a grand slam? We were asking this particular question back in 2016 when he had his worst season as a player but somehow was able to reach the semis at Wimbledon. Well, he proved all of us wrong by winning two slams in 2017 and becoming World No.1 in 2018.
But for some reason, this question seems more relevant now because of his form and age. Federer is 39 years old right now and will turn 40 on August 8. If he does prevail he will become the oldest grand slam champion surpassing Ken Roswell. This year’s Wimbledon is also very important for Federer as Nadal will probably have surpassed Roger’s record for all-time Grand Slams record. Novak Djokovic is World No.1 and sitting on 18 slams after the Australian Open for the 9th time at the start of the season and looks to be in ominous form and will the favorite for the title at SW19.
The biggest challenge for Roger coming into this year’s Wimbledon is his form and lack of match practice. He has only played 2 matches since the beginning of the pandemic last year. He had two back-to-back surgeries on his knee last year. In his comeback tournament at the 2021 Qatar Open recently, Federer made a triumphant beginning by defeating British No.1 Dan Evans in the opening round. However, the Swiss Maestro's resurgence was ended the next match, when he lost to Nikoloz Basilashvili despite having a match point in the deciding set.
Last time Roger Federer was in a grand slam final was in 2019 Wimbledon when he had two match points against Novak Djokovic but eventually lost the final in the most dramatic of fashion. The final is the one which still haunts Federer and his fans alike as he was oh so close to win his 21st grand slam. He has only been able to win one tour title since his heart-breaking loss at SW19. Many have started to doubt his ability and mind-set under pressure in the later stages of his career as he losing matches more frequently whilst having match points. Case in point are his last two Wimbledon losses against Kevin Anderson and Novak Djokovic. This is why it seems that 2021 Wimbledon Championships is his last real shot at a slam because Rafa and Novak are still at the top and the Next Gen is pushing the envelope as well while Roger is in the last stretch of his illustrious career.
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