Federer's Schedule 2018

[GameSetAndMath]

There are only 11 weeks between the end of Miami and the beginning of Halle (and not 12).

Further, if he sits out the clay season completely, he will definitely play Stuttgart also, especially as he is trying to rack up titles now.

It is not difficult to imagine him sitting out 10 weeks after Miami, as that is exactly what he did last year.

 

[GameSetAndMath]

Roger has not lost a single match in 2018. This includes his Hopman cup matches and it even includes the mixed doubles matches at Hopman cup.

 

[isabelle]

Roger has not lost a single match in 2018. This includes his Hopman cup matches and it even includes the mixed doubles matches at Hopman cup.

who'll be the first one to beat him ? any name ??

 

[GameSetAndMath]

Fed is scheduled to travel to Zambia on Foundation work right after Miami tournament. This is actually a strong indication that he has no plans of skipping Miami (as in that case his plan would go to Zambia right after IW). So, at this time it appears that both IW and M are for sure. If at all he plays Dubai (unlikely), it will be in addition to M and not as a substitute for M.

p.s. Just checked the entry list for M. Fed has entered there.

p.s.2. Neither Novak nor Andy has entered IW and M.

 

[GameSetAndMath]

Unlike most tourneys, Dubai ATP tourney runs from Sunday (Feb. 26th) to Saturday (Mar 3rd) [ to give ample time for the players to
travel all the way to another desert from one desert ]. The draw ceremony therefore will likely be held on Friday morning. If Fed is
playing, he will at least tell them before the draw ceremony (as he would be a #1 seed if he plays as a WC). So, we will know within
the next 48 hours or so about the situation.

However, all indications point to Fed skipping it.

 

[El Dude]

I wouldn't be surprised if he plays Dubai. It is pretty easy pickings, and very tempting to grab those 500 points, which in turn greatly increases his chances of keeping #1 not only through the Sunshine Double, but all the way through clay season into July. Consider a few scenarios, in terms of point differentials with him and Rafa:

Now (through Rotterdam): Roger +345
Acapulco/Dubai points off: Roger +600
If Roger skips Dubai, Rafa wins Acapulco: Roger +100
If both play and win: Roger +600
If both play, Roger wins and Rafa loses in final: Roger +900

Roger loses 1000 points to Rafa's 90 at Indian Wells, so he probably has to either win IW again, or reach the final with Rafa going out early. But by playing and winning Dubai, he makes it far more possible to keep the #1 ranking not only through IW, but also through Miami where the lost points is only 400.

In other words, playing and winning Dubai increases his chances of keeping the #1 ranking all the way through at least clay season and up to Wimbledon. If he doesn't play Dubai, he'll probably lose it for about 3 months, between the end of Miami and at least the beginning of clay season.

Of course maybe it doesn't matter that much, but we're talking 11+ weeks at #1 at stake, so it isn't nothing. It doesn't all hinge on Dubai, but Dubai does figure in somewhat prominently.

 

[GameSetAndMath]

If he plays all three, it probably means that he will skip clay season completely.

 

[GameSetAndMath]

Correction to my earlier post: The Dubai tournament starts on Monday only (just like any other regular tournament), but ends on Saturday to give folks ample time to get to USA for IW. So, the draw ceremony will be only on Saturday. So, there could be some more days of suspense.

I did not think about the situation from one angle. If it is a question of choosing either Dubai or Miami, Miami wins out in three ways. One obvious way is that Miami offers 1,000 points whereas Dubai offers 500. The second is that in Dubai Fed will have to play for five continuous days. In Miami, it is almost like playing on alternate days (except at the end). The third and most important point is the following. In Dubai Fed can add points, but cannot block Rafa from gathering points, as Rafa is not playing there. On the other hand in Miami, Fed not only can add points for himself, but also can prevent Rafa from getting points as both will be playing there.

 

[Moxie]

If he plays all three, it probably means that he will skip clay season completely.

This was my guess. Personally, I hope he plays Dubai.

 

[The_Grand_Slam]

This was my guess. Personally, I hope he plays Dubai.

Why?

 

[Front242]

Why?

To rule out any chance of him beating Nadal at RG

 

[Moxie]

To rule out any chance of him beating Nadal at RG

No, I hope he plays clay, too!

 

[DarthFed]

^ Praying he overplays to leave the door open for Ralphie after clay?

 

[DarthFed]

No need to play Dubai, the goal is world domination and that means winning Wimbledon and USO, something he may have done last year if he didn't get all stupid with the Montreal catastrophe.

Overplaying like he would by playing Dubai, IW and Miami would put him at much greater risk of injury. If he shows up healthy and motivated he should continue winning.

 

[Front242]

No, I hope he plays clay, too!

In 2 minds myself 'cos if he plays he risks injury and could also get out of his aggressive style before Wimbledon along with potential fatigue from long matches. There are rumours Nadal may pull a Federer and skip grass season. Time will tell.

 

[Moxie]

No need to play Dubai, the goal is world domination and that means winning Wimbledon and USO, something he may have done last year if he didn't get all stupid with the Montreal catastrophe.

Overplaying like he would by playing Dubai, IW and Miami would put him at much greater risk of injury. If he shows up healthy and motivated he should continue winning.

You make him sound like a Bond villain.

 

[DarthFed]

In 2 minds myself 'cos if he plays he risks injury and could also get out of his aggressive style before Wimbledon along with potential fatigue from long matches. There are rumours Nadal may pull a Federer and skip grass season. Time will tell.

The second part you mentioned about it possibly messing with his aggressive game is part of the reason I hope he never plays on clay again. He is at a point right now of perfect aggression IMO. He can't win on clay like that and of course it risks fatigue/injury too.

 

[DarthFed]

You make him sound like a Bond villain.

With his elegant game he'd be a good Bond. I'm sure we could find a nice brute of a villain for Rafa to play.

 

[mrzz]

He can't win on clay like that

I wanted to give 347 likes for the "world domination" line above. But with this I disagree... given that his current aggression is as much based on placement than it is on power, it could be quite effective on clay. His new, much more solid backhand could also be quite an asset. One one hand, I understand the argument for skipping clay, on the other, not only I would like to see him play on it, but I think (as I said elsewhere) that skipping a surface diminishes his latest accomplishments a bit.

 

[DarthFed]

I wanted to give 347 likes for the "world domination" line above. But with this I disagree... given that his current aggression is as much based on placement than it is on power, it could be quite effective on clay. His new, much more solid backhand could also be quite an asset. One one hand, I understand the argument for skipping clay, on the other, not only I would like to see him play on it, but I think (as I said elsewhere) that skipping a surface diminishes his latest accomplishments a bit.

I should be more clear, he's not winning big clay titles playing like that IMO. And the only reason he should play is if he thinks he has a solid shot at winning RG. If it's a single match then yes he of course can win but I find it difficult to picture him winning 7 best of 5 matches at RG playing this aggressively. Points are longer and the ball bounces much higher, it's a whole different ball game. With that said with how bad the field is I can see him being very tempted to give it a go and clearly the style he's playing and having a big win streak does give him a better chance vs Nadal than he used to have. But I still say save it for Wimbledon. If he shows up strong there he is overwhelming favorite again and if history doesn't repeat itself he'd be a strong favorite at USO too. Also, not playing clay doesn't diminish his other wins, it just really diminishes his chances at being year end #1 as we saw last year when he badly outplayed Nadal the whole year aside from clay and USO.