On Tuesday, Roger Federer posted a message on his official website announcing he was pulling out of the Madrid Open to be with his pregnant wife, Mirka. Federer had previously said he’d skip tournamentsto be with his wife for the arrival of their third child:
Roger Federer
I’ve decided to withdraw from Madrid to be with my wife Mirka during these next few exciting weeks for our family. I apologize to my fans and hope to be back in Madrid next year. I’ll be training near my home, and am excited to rejoin the Tour soon!
The parsing of the statement from Fed Fans came instantaneously. (Read the following paragraph in a breathless, hurried tone.) He said “next few exciting weeks” — plural. That means he’s definitely out for Rome, right? The year’s final clay-court Masters 1000 event starts Monday, immediately after Madrid. No way he makes it back before then. But what about the French Open? That starts in less than three weeks. Roger said he’d be with his family for a “few” weeks. That means more than two, right? Ohmygoodness, he’s going to miss the French! And what did he mean by rejoining the tour “soon.” And what cryptic message was he sending with the exclamation point? Maybe he’s going to miss Wimbledon too. Is Roger Federer retiring?!
(AP)
(AP)
All right, let’s calm down a bit. First of all, Federer has already said he’s going to do what’s best for his family. If that means missing one tournament or three tournaments, that’s what it’s going to be. He knows what his priorities are.
Second, the only fact we can take away from that statement is that Federer isn’t playing Madrid. Everything else is speculation.
The idea of Federer missing the French Open made headlines last month, but a reading of the transcript shows that he didn’t actually bring that up.
(USA TODAY Sports Images)
(USA TODAY Sports Images)
In that Monte Carlo press conference, Federer simply revealed his plans to take time away for the birth. The French Open didn’t come up until a reporter specifically asked about it. Federer responded:
Yeah, let’s talk about it when it would happen. At the moment we hope it’s not going to be that way. If it is, that’s what it is, you know.”
The inference is clear: Though he would skip it, Federer had little expectation of missing the French Open. He sounded like a man who anticipated a birth before, not after, May 25. (Anyone who’s ever waited for a due date knows that nothing is written in stone, of course.)