Swiss Maestro Roger Federer, who played his first match on clay-courts this year at the Geneva Open, suffered a shock defeat in the hands of Spain’s Pablo Andujar. Federer left the court in disappointment after leading the third set, before throwing away the match.

The Swiss star started the opening round match on his home-soil on a positive note as he slowly kept finding the momentum. After losing the first set to the Spaniard, Federer played his usual, aggressive style of play in the second set and won it comfortably.

Also read: BIG UPSET! Top-Seed Roger Federer Stunned by Pablo Andujar at Geneva Open 2021

However, it was the third set where Federer lost momentum towards the end as he played three bad games consecutively and lost the match to Andujar, 4-6,6-4,4-6. The Swiss star became too defensive on the return and missed a lot of shots in the process.

“I’m just realistic, and I know I will not win the French”- Roger Federer

Also, the Spaniard made sure to keep the score as close as possible and didn’t allow Federer to win another break point in the third set. The last three games in the final set were sloppy from the Swiss star as this sudden lack of intent opened the doors for Pablo Andujar to register one of the biggest wins of his career.

Speaking to the reporters post-defeat, Federer expressed disappointment with the way he tackled crucial points in the final set. The Swiss Maestro also downplayed his chances at the upcoming French Open, and clearly mentioned that he was not the title favorite.

“I’m just realistic, and I know I will not win the French. Whoever thought I would or could win it is wrong. Of course crazier things might have happened, but I’m not so sure in the last 50 years at the French Open somebody just rocked up at 40 years old, being out for a year and a half, and just wins everything straight, or in five sets, or whatever you want to call it”, said Federer.

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The 2009 French Open champion once again stressed that his actual season will begin on grass courts. But, if Federer enters the grass-court season after losing in the first round of Roland Garros, the chances of success for the Swiss will reduce.

Federer maintains that his actual season will begin on grass-courts this year

As always, Federer remained positive about the comeback and said that he was happy to play tennis again. With a career spanning over two decades, the Swiss star faced numerous highs and lows. Right now, the challenge is to accept this tough loss and enter Roland Garros with a positive mindset.

“I know my limitations at the moment. It’s all based and used for the grass-court season or for the rest of the season. I’ve said it several times, for me the season really starts on the grass.“, concluded Federer.

The Swiss Maestro had better movement in today’s match when compared to the Qatar Open. In fact, he was able to find the range on his forehand and hit quite a few winners that were reminiscent of his older and healthier self.

As the French Open starts in another two weeks, it will be interesting to see how Roger Federer approaches his first match in Paris after the sudden exit in Geneva.

Also read: OLD WINE: Rafael Nadal Breaks Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic’s Record, Attains an Intriguing Feat at Italian Open