Roger Federer’s tennis future appears to be in doubt.
The 40-year-old great posted a video on his Instagram Sunday announcing his withdrawal from the U.S. Open to undergo a third surgery on his right knee.
In the video, Federer acknowledged that he is unsure when, or if, he will return to the court.
“I want to give myself a glimmer of hope to return to the tour in some shape or form,” he said. “I am realistic. Don’t get me wrong. I know how difficult it is at this age to do another surgery and try it. But I want to be healthy and I’ll go through the rehab process.”
Federer is tied with Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal with the most career Grand Slam titles, 20, with Djokovic aiming to complete a calendar Grand Slam and take the sole spot at the U.S. Open in a couple of weeks.
Federer first revealed he had a setback with his knee after he was upset by Hubert Hurkacz of Poland during Wimbledon. He also missed the U.S. Open last year due to knee issues.
He added that it will be months before he considers if he will return.
“As you can imagine, it’s not been simple,” Federer said. “I’ve beein doing a lot of checks with doctors on my knee, getting all the information as I hurt myself further in the grass court season and Wimbledon. It’s not the way to go forward. Unfortunately for the medium to long-term to feel better, I will need surgery.”
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