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Roger Federer wins on comeback at Qatar Open after 405-day lay-off

Roger Federer celebrates after beating Dan Evans
Roger Federer celebrates after beating Dan Evans

Roger Federer toasted his first match in 405 days by edging out Dan Evans in a three-set thriller at the Qatar Open.

Federer was back in action for the first time in 14 months after two knee surgeries, and the 39-year-old was quickly back into the groove with a 7-6 (8) 3-6 7-5 victory over the British player.

Federer admitted he felt tired at times but said he will not be changing his post-match routine.

Federrer had not played since losing to Novak Djokovic in the 2020 Australian Open semi-finals but displayed his trademark silky movement and said the knee had held up during a two-hour 24 minute duel.

Asked whether he would be employing any new recovery techniques before his quarter-final against Nikoloz Basilashvili, Federer said he would stick to his usual routine.

"You're talking to an old-school guy. So I have done one ice bath and I didn't like it. So I'm not going to do that again," Federer told reporters.

"I don't just take painkillers for fun. I only take them when I really have to. Don't feel like that's the case tonight.

"I'm going to stretch and take a massage and sleep in and then warm up properly tomorrow. Very simple."

While the 20-times Grand Slam champion said in the build-up that tennis for him is like riding a bicycle, he admitted there were nerves as his first match back loomed.

"In the morning I started to think about it and, I don't know, you can just feel like you're getting more tense again," Federer said. "Not that you could start worrying, but you're actually getting more excited than anything else.

"There are a lot of things I can still improve on, but overall I'm incredibly happy how I played," he said. "If I lose 6-2 6-2, I'm equally happy than sitting here 7-5 in the third, because it's been over 400 days I haven't been on a tennis court, so it's been a long time."

The 20-time grand slam champion will take on Basilashvili in the quarter-finals after the Georgian swept past Malek Jaziri 6-2 6-2.

Top seed Dominic Thiem fended off Russian wild card Aslan Karatsev 6-7 (7) 6-3 6-2 to book a last-eight clash with Robert Bautista Agut, who moved past Kazakhstan’s Alexander Bublik 6-4 6-3.

Defending champion Andrey Rublev enjoyed a walkover into the quarter-finals after Richard Gasquet withdrew with a leg injury.

Marton Fucscovics beat South African qualifier Lloyd Harris 4-6 7-6 (5) 6-2, to book a tie with Rublev.

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