Dubai: World No. 2 Roger Federer has announced that he is no hurry to stop his tennis career, not at least well after the 2012 London Olympics.
"Absolutely yes I am looking at the Olympics and beyond that," Federer told media before the start of the Dubai Duty Free Men's Open here.
Currently ranked No. 2, Federer held the ATP number one position for a record 237 consecutive weeks. He has won a male record 16 Grand Slam singles titles and he is one of seven men's players to capture the career grand slam, and one of three (with Andre Agassi and Rafael Nadal) to do so on three different surfaces (clay, grass and hard courts).
"At times I have been talking about what's after the Olympics, what tournaments to play and so forth. So that's coming along now. That's how I plan all my playing schedules and I kind of feel that everybody needs to know where we are going," Federer added.
He insisted that he has no plans of slowing down on tour either. "At the moment, it's always depends a little bit, especially through I guess here, Indian Wells and Miami, which can be a tricky period. It's very strong tournaments and if you don't play well or you are injured… that's what happened to me last year," he said.
Sticking to schedule
"At the end of the day I am not the kind of guy who signs in and pulls out. I try not to, except when you are injured or sick, like here over the last couple of years. You can always take a wild card, you can always sign in late, instead of signing in a year in advance, like I did in Stockholm last year," Federer added.
"I have a set schedule and there's always a few tournaments that could be added."
The Swiss player, currently ranked number two admitted his designs on claiming his top spot ahead of Rafael Nadal, more so with his approach towards 30 not being a detriment to his tennis skills. "I can't believe it that it's so much time. I still feel I was playing the juniors not so long ago. Years on tour go by extremely quick because of the travelling and because of the organisation and because you are looking so far ahead and it's a fast-paced life really. And that's why 30 to me does not feel like it," Federer said.
"It's hard to imagine, but I just think that it takes a physical toll but mentally if you enjoy playing then it's not such a problem. The years go by on the tour and that's for sure," he added.
"The challenge since the last one year has been to try and stay healthy again. I think I have been able to accomplish that and I think that's a good thing. But now I need to do all the right things to remain healthy and lead a pretty much normal life again," Federer said.
Will Roger Federer's task be any easier in the absence of Andy Murray? Will you be at the Aviation Club to watch the games?
