Can Roger Federer return to winning ways?

Roger Federer has confirmed he will return to competitive action in Doha, ending his 14-month injury absence away from the game.

The 39-year-old has not played since his Australian Open semi-final defeat to Novak Djokovic in January of last year but is scheduled to return for the ATP 250 tournament in Doha which kicks off in early March.

The former world number one has had to have two knee surgeries during his time away, having his first in February, before having another procedure in June after suffering a setback during his rehabilitation.

The big question now is can he return to the top of his game, or is this is the beginning of the end for one of Tennis’s greatest players?

Age is a big factor. During last years Australian Open, Federer had already come through two gruelling five-set matches before taking on Novak Djokovic, and it showed its effect as Federer was comfortably beaten by the Serbian.

Of course, his knee may have been troubling him then, but Federer was already aiming to keep rallies relatively short. In his opening two rounds, 70 percent of points won by the Swiss saw him have a maximum of two shots with only 22 rallies being over 9 strokes.

Federer can use the advantage of his strong serve in games to win points comfortably with him having the highest first serve percentage in the opening two rounds as well.However, the first two rounds of the tournament came against players outside the top 40 in the rankings, so will Federer’s tactics be effective against the best players in the world?

The 20-time Grand Slam champion has another tactic up his sleeve for receiving serves that could make a return.

In 2015, Federer implemented a tactic called SABR (Sneak Attack By Roger) where he would step up high into the court on an opponent’s second serve, to give him the best possible chance of dictating a rally. Federer has hinted a return to that style could be possible to try and give him an advantage of winning games more comfortably.

Federer has notoriously been known as an aggressive player, but with the development of the game and the increasing recovery speeds of young and upcoming players, Federer may want to be more creative in his play.

The effect of dropshots and net play may allow him to finish off points in a rapid fashion and add a craft to his game that some players would struggle to deal with.

We have seen Federer be creative at the net with a typical serve and volley technique consistently used on the grass courts at Wimbledon over the years.

To add to his grand slam collection, Federer must avoid being drawn into long winded rallies that will cause him problems. There is no doubt he will be working on being aggressive and making points as short as possible to play to maintain his sharpness, but more players may be inclined to play a more defensive game against the Swiss. The interesting thing to see will be his back-up plan against players who will look to stay in rallies. Will Federer be able to maintain the consistency needed to fight through these wars of attrition?

As much as I want Federer to return and get back to the top, I think his age will be a massive factor in his downfall. Having to have two major knee surgeries is not an easy feat to come back from too. Particularly for the Grand Slams, if Federer gets pushed all the way to five sets, I cannot see him making it very far in the tournaments, and he will undoubtedly have to suffer the struggles against the better players even if he gets a long way into the draw.

Federer has a plan, but will it all go according to on the court?