Roger Federer seems eager to make another great impression, this time in dubai at an ATP 500 tournament which he has won 7 times in the past. Having an unbridled start yesterday against Benoit Paire of France, Federer saw some potential opposition being shouted down earlier today. Besides, his quarter of the main draw seems like a walk in the park compared to that of the Aussie Open. Also today, Andy Murray, the first seed, got past Malek Jaziri, which lends even more credibility to the possibility of a Murray/Federer showdown in the later rounds.
Federer's next opponent
In the next round, Roger Federer will face a player from outside the top 100, Evgeny Donskoy (116 ATP). It'll be their first meeting in the ATP World Tour. From how things look, the 35-year-old Swiss should have no troubles in booking himself a spot in the quarterfinals. But today's tennis seems full of surprises lately. Wawrinka got burned by Damir Dzumhur (77 ATP). Coming back to Federer, the quarterfinal is on the same trend as he might play against either Lucas Pouille (15 ATP) or Marius Copil (124 ATP). Pouille seems to be building momentum as he was a runner-up last week in Marseille, an ATP 250 event. But the young Frenchman is still a player whose pace is fluctuating quite often.
Federer has gas left in the tank
In Dubai, during a press conference, Roger Federer cleared out some aspects regarding his future on the professional tennis circuit. He admitted that he let some speculation emerge but he has no retirement thoughts yet. The rumors regarding his future as a professional tennis player came to life last week when Federer signed a commitment that he'll play in Basel until 2019 -- Basel being his hometown fueled the idea that the 18 time Grand Slam champion will retire at the end of 2019.
With those rumours off the chart, Federer, when no one thought that he might be able to, is having a great 2017. What seemed a wild dream at the end of 2016, is now having a palpable outlook with Federer back in the top 10, competing at the highest level.
