Roger Federer
Roger Federer will return to action after over two months at the Mercedes Cup in June. In this picture, Federer of Switzerland fields questions from the media at a press conference during the BNP Paribas Open at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden in Indian Wells, California, March 8, 2018. Matthew Stockman/Getty Images

Roger Federer made the controversial decision to skip the entire clay court season for the second consecutive year in 2018. In doing so, he will also miss the second Grand Slam of the year at Roland Garros.

In the meantime, long-time rival and friend Rafael Nadal was asserting his dominance on his favorite surface yet again. He has won three titles — Monte Carlo Masters, the Barcelona Open and the Italian Open.

The Spaniard is the world number one at the moment and has to win the French Open to stay at the top of the ATP men’s singles ranking. Federer had for the second time this year briefly taken over at the top before he was overtaken by Nadal.

Federer can again take over at the top if he makes it to the final of the Mercedes Cup — his first tournament once he returns from a two-month break. However, the Swiss ace revealed he was not concerned about the ranking at the moment as staying fit and healthy was his main priority.

He skipped the clay court season in order to focus on Wimbledon and the other grass and hard court events and is keen to remain focused on his primary goal. Federer also praised Nadal and admitted he would not be the player he was today if not for his rivalry with the Spaniard.

“The rankings don’t affect my game. I worked hard to get back to number one, but at this point of my career, chasing that is not the goal. Staying healthy, making sure I am prepared for the big events, and playing places where I enjoy are the real goals,” Federer told Vogue during an event in Paris recently.

“Playing against Rafa for so many years has been amazing—he pushed me to innovate, work harder, and to develop my game. I don’t think I would be the player I am today without him as my chief rival.”

Federer, meanwhile, is hoping he can play at Roland Garros at least once more before he retires from the sport, having missed the French Open for the last three years. He admitted in order to prolong his career, he had to make the difficult decision to play a limited schedule.

The 36-year-old also made it clear spending time with his family will always be one of his main priorities and he was not willing to sacrifice that in order to play more tournaments.

“In consultation with my team, it became clear that if I wanted to try hard to stay on tour for a few more years, I could not play the same busy schedule that I did years back. I needed to balance everything in my life and make sure I had enough time for training, rest, and recovery—and philanthropy,” the Swiss ace said.

“Also, being a father to four kids and a great husband for my wife was paramount in deciding my schedule. But hopefully I can play Roland-Garros again before my career is over,” the 20-time men’s singles Grand Slam winner added.

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