DOHA – Roger Federer marked his eagerly-awaited return to action after more than a year with some vintage tennis as he beat Dan Evans 7-6(8) 3-6 7-5 at the Qatar Open on Wednesday.
The 39-year-old Swiss had not played a competitive match for 405 days and underwent two knee surgeries in 2020, but clicked smoothly back into gear against the British number one.
A socially-distanced evening crowd at the Khalifa Tennis Complex were treated to a high-quality duel with Evans pushing the 20-times Grand Slam champion to the limit.
Federer showed great physical condition and kept his nose in front in the deciding set before pouncing in the 12th game to ri…
Keep on reading: Federer beats Evans in first match for 14 months