For the 18th time in his career, Roger Federer will take to the grass courts at the All England Club at Wimbledon. The Swiss Maestro made his first appearance at Wimbledon in 1999 and hasn’t missed a step since. Tomorrow, Federer will enter Centre Court, the same court on which he has won a record-tying seven gentleman’s championships. After a frustrating season, the 17-time Grand Slam champion will look to turn his season around where his career took-off so many years ago.
The Fed-Express faces-off with Argentinean Guido Pella. The match is scheduled third on Centre Court. Federer and the left-handed Pella have never played before.
Federer’s 2016 season to date
Unlike most years past, the Swiss Maestro has been very limited thus far. As well-known at this point, Federer injured his knee following his semifinal loss to Novak Djokovic at the 2016 Australian Open. This forced Federer to have surgery on his meniscus, the first major surgery of Federer’s hall-of-fame career.
The Fed-Express finally made his return in Monte Carlo and won two matches. Before the Masters 1000 Series event in Madrid, a back injury forced Federer to miss the tournament. That same injury forced him out of the French Open as well, the first Grand Slam tournament that the Swiss number one had missed since 1999.
Prior to this year's Wimbledon Championships, Federer reached the semifinals at both grass court tournaments. As he told reporters before the tournament, his past injury will not hold him back for the Championships.
Pella’s 2016 season to date
So far this year, Pella has compiled a record of 13-13. Amazingly, he has played more matches than Federer, who has only played 22 matches. Earlier this season, in March, Pella peaked at 39th in the world, his best ranking to date.
In February, the Argentinian reached his first ATP World Tour final in Rio, but lost to Pablo Cuevas in three sets. Pella reached his first Grand Slam main draw in 2012 at the U.S. Open. This is only his second appearance in the main draw at Wimbledon. He did reach the main draw in 2013, but lost in the first round.
This season, Pella competed in the main draw at the Australian Open and at the French Open. He reached the second round at both events, his best result to date at any Grand Slam. Pella did push Gilles Simon to five sets at Roland Garros, but lost the deciding fifth set 4-6.
Match preview
Coming into this match, Federer is the overwhelming favorite. This has nothing to do with Pella, however. The Swiss Maestro has been dominant at Wimbledon, compiling an 89 percent winning percentage on the grass outside of London.
Federer last lost in the first round at Wimbledon in 2002. Despite his injuries as of late, Federer played relatively well in his warm-up tournaments. Pella, on the other hand, lost in the round of 32 to Benjamin Becker at the 2016 Aegon Open in Nottingham. Expect the king of grass to advance at his favorite tournament as he searches for his record eighth Wimbledon crown and 18th overall Grand Slam title.
Prediction: Federer in three sets