Federer's Schedule 2019

[GameSetAndMath]

Even half of 2018 is not over yet. But, that does not stop me from opening this thread as there is a new announcement. Federer has announced that he will start his 2019 season by playing in Hopman Cup along with Belinda Bencic. This shall be his third consecutive appearance there. The last two times he started with Hopman Cup, he won the AO also. Let us hope it happens again.

Here is 2019 ATP Tournament Calendar for handy reference.

 

[GameSetAndMath]

I don't really expect too much changes to his 2019 schedule as compared to 2018 schedule (even though we don't really know what is his 2018 schedule yet ). He will sit out the entire clay season. Instead of Rotterdam, which he played this year to grab #1 ranking, he is likely to play in Dubai (where his contract expired and new one was in negotiation).

Actually, I would prefer that he continue to skip Dubai and play Rotterdam instead. Given the he is skipping the entire clay season, he needs to play both IW and Miami. But, these two are back to back tournaments and further Duabi immediately precedes IW. That will be a streak of five consecutive weeks of match play, probably not recommended at his age. If he substitutes Rotterdam for Dubai, he gets two weeks off after AO & before Rotterdam and also two weeks off after Rotterdam & before the sunshine double.

 

[GameSetAndMath]

Another interesting tidbit is that his contract with Basel expires in 2019. This led to speculation in some quarters that he will retire after the 2019 Basel tournament. I don't believe that. They will negotiate a new contract.

Also, if Roger wants to play in Olympics 2020, he needs to do some community service by playing in DC in 2019. That will be another twist to his 2019 schedule.

 

[El Dude]

I wouldn't be surprised if 2019 is his last "semi-fulltime" season. Maybe he plays a few tournaments, say 5-8, in 2020 and even 2021 - maybe AO, Indian Wells, Halle, Wimbledon, Cincinnati, US Open, Basel.

On the other hand, why don't more older players play partial schedules like that? It seems most go from full or nearly fulltime to retiring. Is it because it is hard to reach their best level playing so little? I mean, couldn't Rafa conceivably play the clay tour only until he was 40 and still remain competitive? And couldn't Fed play even less and come back in strong form for the three non-clay GS and a few choice tournaments?

 

[Moxie]

I wouldn't be surprised if 2019 is his last "semi-fulltime" season. Maybe he plays a few tournaments, say 5-8, in 2020 and even 2021 - maybe AO, Indian Wells, Halle, Wimbledon, Cincinnati, US Open, Basel.

On the other hand, why don't more older players play partial schedules like that? It seems most go from full or nearly fulltime to retiring. Is it because it is hard to reach their best level playing so little? I mean, couldn't Rafa conceivably play the clay tour only until he was 40 and still remain competitive? And couldn't Fed play even less and come back in strong form for the three non-clay GS and a few choice tournaments?

Doesn't it make a difference that "most older players" aren't Roger or Rafa? They're not going to go deep into most tournaments. So it's easier to play a "full" schedule. It's only the top players that have to manage their schedules, anyway, right?

 

[El Dude]

Doesn't it make a difference that "most older players" aren't Roger or Rafa? They're not going to go deep into most tournaments. So it's easier to play a "full" schedule. It's only the top players that have to manage their schedules, anyway, right?

Yes, makes sense - and it accounts for why the elites play 15-18ish tournaments a year, while the Ferrers of the world play 20+. But that isn't what I meant. I'm talking about how most players, of whatever level, play basically full-time up to the point of their retirement. Why not a gradual phase out? Roger seems to be doing it, although he went from a 100% schedule to a 65-70% schedule (I'm guessing clay is about 30%). Maybe he plays at two-thirds another year or two, then drops to half for a couple years, then a third for a year or two after that...Or we could imagine Rafa playing 100% for another year or two, then dropping to two-thirds or so for a year or two after that (clay plus a few choice others), then 30-40% for a year or more after that (clay only, AO + USO).

I'm just saying this never really happens and I'm not sure why. My best guess is that most players need the court time to stay sharp, although this really depends upon the player. Roger coming back in 2017 to play at his highest level since 2007 for a couple months is obviously an indicator that this isn't true for everyone. On the other hand, he didn't look so great this year coming back from the clay layoff period.

 

[Moxie]

Also, though, at a lower level, they only earn so much money, and these are their waning earning years in tennis. Why back off? I don't really understand why you think it's odd that they do play as much as the body can still handle.

 

[GameSetAndMath]

This is what I expect will be Federer's schedule for 2019. He will be 37. No point in chasing #1 ranking or YE #1 ranking anymore. Just keep the focus on winning GSs and titles in general. So, it will be a really pared down schedule. I am not listing XO events.

1. AO
2. IW
3. Miami
4. Halle
5. Wimbledon
6. Cincy
7. USO
8. Shanghai
9. Basel
10. WTF

In addition to the above 10, he will be playing Hopman cup and Laver cup. Also, he may need to throw in couple of DC ties if he plans to participate in Tokyo 2020.

If he plays in Dubai also, that will be five weeks of continuous play. Not good for him. If he wants to play Dubai, he should get rid of Miami from the schedule.

 

[Murat Baslamisli]

I know I am in the extreme minority but I want Roger to play one more French Open. With or without one prep tournament. Just take your time to prep throughout the clay season, get in there, do your best, say your goodbyes and you are done. Get rid of Stuttgart in the process.
The guy was the second best clay court player for the longest time, until Nole got better. I would like to see him one last time on the red stuff. He does not have to kill himself. he will play first strike tennis regardless...

 

[Michael;Kiwi]

I know I am in the extreme minority but I want Roger to play one more French Open. With or without one prep tournament. Just take your time to prep throughout the clay season, get in there, do your best, say your goodbyes and you are done. Get rid of Stuttgart in the process.
The guy was the second best clay court player for the longest time, until Nole got better. I would like to see him one last time on the red stuff. He does not have to kill himself. he will play first strike tennis regardless...

I agree. I believe that he should always play the Grand Slams. Maybe Rafa loses. It’s not impossible. Also, I fail to see why he needs to play Stuttgart.

 

[GameSetAndMath]

I know I am in the extreme minority but I want Roger to play one more French Open. With or without one prep tournament. Just take your time to prep throughout the clay season, get in there, do your best, say your goodbyes and you are done. Get rid of Stuttgart in the process.
The guy was the second best clay court player for the longest time, until Nole got better. I would like to see him one last time on the red stuff. He does not have to kill himself. he will play first strike tennis regardless...

Roger is not sentimental or superstitious. I don't see him playing in RG or some other tournament just to say goodbye. If at all he plays it will be due to some other reason.

I personally don't mind Roger playing in RG at all from now on. However, I would still like him to play Monte Carlo and Rome sometime to give himself a chance to win trophies that are not in his cabinet. Although I would like him to do so, I doubt he will ever step foot on clay tourneys again.

 

[DarthFed]

I'm fine with him playing RG if his knees are fine on it. He's mentioned that they "don't feel right" on clay since his injury in 2016. It's possible he is just saying that so it doesn't look so bad that he skips all of clay season but it's possible he's telling the truth. And if that is the truth he would be dumb to ever play there again because even a 40 year old Roger is a threat to win Wimbledon

 

[Moxie]

I'm fine with him playing RG if his knees are fine on it. He's mentioned that they "don't feel right" on clay since his injury in 2016. It's possible he is just saying that so it doesn't look so bad that he skips all of clay season but it's possible he's telling the truth. And if that is the truth he would be dumb to ever play there again because even a 40 year old Roger is a threat to win Wimbledon

I'm inclined to believe that he's protecting his knee against the clay season, and I don't mind at all that he protects his Wimbledon...it's wise. I would like him to go back once for the victory lap, but we'll see, I guess, how he handles the retirement part. Maybe he'll play Basel and mic-drop. Anyway, I don't agree with @GameSetAndMath on MC and Rome. I think those ships have sailed, and he would be risking the rest of his year to push for them. Imho. His resume is pretty good without them.

 

[GameSetAndMath]

I'm fine with him playing RG if his knees are fine on it. He's mentioned that they "don't feel right" on clay since his injury in 2016. It's possible he is just saying that so it doesn't look so bad that he skips all of clay season but it's possible he's telling the truth. And if that is the truth he would be dumb to ever play there again because even a 40 year old Roger is a threat to win Wimbledon

I agree that if his legs are really not feeling right, he should never play on clay again. However, if he is simply dodging, it might be worth giving MC and/or Rome another try. Given that he was formerly clay #2 player and given that MC and Rome are just three set matches, it should not be too tiring. Further there is plenty of time between MC and Halle. So, at least MC will be worth a try.

The downsides are potentially exacerbating H2H with the Peasant and more importantly might give confidence to the Peasant just before Wimbledon, especially when he has found a new life on bright weather grass.

 

[Moxie]

I agree that if his legs are really not feeling right, he should never play on clay again. However, if he is simply dodging, it might be worth giving MC and/or Rome another try. Given that he was formerly clay #2 player and given that MC and Rome are just three set matches, it should not be too tiring. Further there is plenty of time between MC and Halle. So, at least MC will be worth a try.

The downsides are potentially exacerbating H2H with the Peasant and more importantly might give confidence to the Peasant just before Wimbledon, especially when he has found a new life on bright weather grass.

I almost don't want to respond to you if you insist on calling the King of Clay a "peasant," particularly in this context. But I will, and you won't be happy. Roger had a great opportunity in MC...2013, I think? But he lost in 3 to Wawrinka. And his last final at Rome, Nadal skunked him worse than the '08 RG. If I were you, I'd give them up.

 

[DarthFed]

I almost don't want to respond to you if you insist on calling the King of Clay a "peasant," particularly in this context. But I will, and you won't be happy. Roger had a great opportunity in MC...2013, I think? But he lost in 3 to Wawrinka. And his last final at Rome, Nadal skunked him worse than the '08 RG. If I were you, I'd give them up.

He made the 2015 Rome final and lost to Djokovic. He had plenty of chances at both, he badly blew the 06 Rome final and also 2014 Monte Carlo vs. Stan. I don't think missing MS titles are a big deal. Nole may very well win Cincy and complete the set but that's not going to be some big edge in his resume compared to the others.

With that said, if Roger's knee truly isn't a factor and he plays RG again the schedule could be Rome, RG and then Halle. I highly doubt he would ever play MC again, it just doesn't serve a purpose.

 

[GameSetAndMath]

He made the 2015 Rome final and lost to Djokovic. He had plenty of chances at both, he badly blew the 06 Rome final and also 2914 Monte Carlo vs. Stan. I don't think missing MS titles are a big deal. Nole may very well win Cincy and complete the set but that's not going to be some big edge in his resume compared to the others.

With that said, if Roger's knee truly isn't a factor and he plays RG again the schedule could be Rome, RG and then Halle. I highly doubt he would ever play MC again, it just doesn't serve a purpose.

Roger is unlikely to win RG, even if Rafa falls along the way considering Novak and Thiem will also be in the field. Further those grinding five sets on clay will really be fatiguing him. Finally, RG is too close to Wimby.

On the other hand, MC and Rome are just three set matches and so will be less tiring. Also, they are relatively farther from Wimbledon giving him enough chance to recover in time.

 

[Michael;Kiwi]

Roger is unlikely to win RG, even if Rafa falls along the way considering Novak and Thiem will also be in the field. Further those grinding five sets on clay will really be fatiguing him. Finally, RG is too close to Wimby.

On the other hand, MC and Rome are just three set matches and so will be less tiring. Also, they are relatively farther from Wimbledon giving him enough chance to recover in time.

If Federer plays clay do you really believe he would skip Roland Garros?

 

[El Dude]

If Federer plays clay do you really believe he would skip Roland Garros?

I think he’d play Rome or Madrid, see how he feels and then decide on RG and be ready to retire as soon as he starts feeling at all iffy.

 

[GameSetAndMath]

Move on Rafa. Fed says he is considering playing on clay next year .