When Roger Federer discovered he would need a lengthy rest after Wimbledon to heal the wonky knee that he injured, freakishly, in a Melbourne hotel bathroom, he did not dust off a pile of overdue jobs wife Mirka wanted done around the house, or vow to finally reorganise his sock drawer. Federer drew up a list of – mostly – family experiences to work through during the longest break of his career. Places to go, events to see.
"I was able to maybe do, like, 50 per cent of them, which is great. But these 'socks projects, no'," a relaxed Federer joked in a candid interview with Fairfax Media. "I'm not so good around the house. I stopped doing that a long time ago. Now I love being the husband, and that's plenty."
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At home in Switzerland, where the family of six settled beyond the usual one-month maximum, there were hiking expeditions to places a younger Roger used to roam with his father, Robert, and visits to one of the scenic Swiss national parks he had never been. Socialised, too, in a way that tennis and travel schedules rarely allow.
"It was so cool to say 'OK, well next Tuesday, who shall we do dinner with? Next Wednesday, lunch with this person'. So we were like normal people, and I'm like 'oooh, we have to get organised!' All of a sudden there's too many dinners, too many lunches, you're like "ooh, it would be nice to just be home again." But not really, for a priority was to spend time with family and friends, and that was achieved.
So, too, the scratching of a long-time Formula One itch at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. He and Mirka took their first child-free vacation since their first set of twins were born seven years ago, and also attended Paris Fashion Week. "Not that I'd put that on the list," he said of the latter, "but all of a sudden I was like 'OK, let's go'. We went there also by ourselves without the kids, and that's something that we've never really done before, either. So we did some cool things."
To the point where was it all so enjoyable, so free, that was there a moment during his six-month hiatus that the 35-year-old was tempted to pack away his racquet bag for good? Not really, Federer says, because the desire to be healthy is for life, not just tennis. "There was a double-benefit of doing the rehab in the proper way, so it didn't cross my mind to throw in the towel now.
"The injury I sustained here last year was so small, if you like. A meniscus tear – honestly, it's so minor ... that to me that was not going to be career-threatening. But, yes, it's legit that you ask me the question. At 35, you do ask yourself questions. If you have an injury, or you're sick, you want to get better, so that's a natural mindset, then after that you see how it is. Maybe at training if I would have felt pain, or it wasn't well all the time, that's when you have to ask yourself the question, but that moment never came."
Federer surprised himself by not missing the Rio Olympics as much as he thought he would, or his first US Open since 1999. "I thought it was gonna destroy me, not being able to represent Switzerland and go for the medal, not be at the US Open after 20 years almost, but funny enough, I was at peace because there was nothing I could do.
![Roger Federer has enjoyed his injury-enforced layoff.](/web/20170116084023im_/http://www.theage.com.au/content/dam/images/g/t/r/t/d/c/image.related.articleLeadwide.620x349.gtrrrm.png/1484471066289.jpg)
"It was just a decision I took, a tough one. It was hard, the team supported me, everybody's been amazing, but then once you decide that it's healthier and wiser to do that there is almost no looking back and going 'what did I miss? What if?' What if's gone. It's decided, you're home and you're not there, and just deal with it. I'm old enough that I can handle it, and it wasn't depressing at home, at all, it was great."
He had not imagined he would follow the live scoring as closely as he did; having thought he would just re-immerse himself after a comeback that was always planned for January. "But I couldn't resist," he smiles. "I care too much for the game." He was tempted to return earlier, dared to dream that he was ready to win a set or two, but stayed patient, and arrived at the Hopman Cup after six full practice weeks. What felt to Federer like a month too long was nevertheless the buffer he had needed as security against setbacks and to reduce the uncertainty of what he calls "the unknown".
![Mirka Federer with her daughters Myla Rose and Charlene Riva at the Hopman Cup earlier this year.](/web/20170116084023im_/http://www.theage.com.au/content/dam/images/g/t/r/t/7/d/image.related.articleLeadwide.620x349.gtrrrm.png/1484471066289.jpg)
Like No.17, his Open seeding, that is not a place the man who spent 302 weeks at No.1 is much used to. But, despite the resulting harsh draw that may unfold after a softer two-qualifier opening, Federer takes heart from the fact that his rivals are also returning from the off-season for the first major of the year. "Everybody's fresh, but nobody quite knows. I have six months I haven't played, but other players haven't played for six weeks, so it's not like they have a huge advantage. But, yes, it feels different for me this year than any year that I've showed up here in Australia, no doubt about it."
Having woken after less sleep with more energy during those first restful post-Wimbledon months, and therefore as "maybe a better father for the first few hours of the day", Federer is convinced that, physically, the break helped fix problems he didn't even know he had. Longevity could be another benefit, although his is remarkable already, and time will be the ultimate judge.
If it did all end tomorrow, is there anything the sport's greatest ever hasn't achieved or experienced that he wished he had? Yes, in terms of certain tournaments he would have liked to win more often, for example, but there are no gaping holes in the 17-slam man's CV. "I look back and you're like 'OK, what was I when I was little? What was my dream scenario?' Is to maybe be top 10, maybe play at Wimbledon, maybe, in a crazy way, win Wimbledon?'
"I think I've done so much more and if you look at it that way you're like 'no, no, no, one year on tour would have been enough to achieve that dream, and I've had 15 years that I was able to do'. So I don't think I've missed anything, and I'm happy I'm still going."
So back he has come to Melbourne, via a successful and slightly emotional exhibition return at the Hopman Cup, for an 18th Australian Open that starts against veteran Jurgen Melzer on Monday night. Back at the same hotel where, last January, the knee injury originally occurred, prompting the first surgery of a well-managed but undeniably fortunate career.
On the day after his 2016 semi-final loss to Novak Djokovic, a weary Federer was about to run a bath for his twin girls – a little reluctantly, for he had suggested they take the easier shower option instead – when he swivelled, and something went pop. Almost 12 months later, Federer's first thought when he entered a bathroom almost identical to last year's version was that it would not, could not, possibly happen again.
"It was a movement that you do, I do, 20 times, a day so it could happen crossing the street. I didn't slip. I just turned my knee a little bit and that was enough. So I guess my knee was ready to go," he smiles. "It's OK." And so, again, is Federer, among whose mundane domestic duties this week have been another item worth listing. At bath time, he has fearlessly, safely, and without incident, turned on the taps.