‘I don’t want to see Roger Federer at 80%’ asserts John McEnroe on possible return

John McEnroe has declared that he only wants to see the return of Roger Federer if the Swiss can recover to his fullest capabilities. 

The 20-time Slam champion last played on 7th July last year at Wimbledon, falling to Hubert Hurkacz in the quarter-finals in straight sets including a 6-0 final set.

Federer has since revealed that it is unlikely he will return to the competitive circuit before this year’s Wimbledon in June, but that he hopes to return to heavier training workloads very soon.

Seven-time Slam singles champion McEnroe really hopes that a Federer return would see the 40-year-old back to his best level.

“Anytime we are at an event and Roger [Federer] is not playing, we miss him,” McEnroe told Eurosport.

“He’s the classiest player and the most beautiful player I have ever seen on a court.

“As a fan I would love to see Roger around.

“If he wants to play, we will be happy he is playing but I don’t want to see Roger at 80%.

“We have seen that with [Andy] Murray and it’s not easy.

“You want to see the top guys play at their best.”

After struggling with prolonged injuries, Murray had a hard time breaking back into the groove of tour level tennis as his ranking and time off court hampered his comeback.

However, after a more sustained period of play and improving results the former world number one recently broke back into the ATP top 100 for the first time since June 2018.

Federer is currently ranked 30th in the world but will continue to fall down the men’s tennis ladder the longer he remains away from the sport.

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