Federer withdraws from Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships

Roger Federer has withdrawn from the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships after announcing he has undergone knee surgery.

He took to Twitter to announce that he will also pull out of "Indian Wells, Miami, Bogota, and the French Open" after going under the knife in Switzerland on Wednesday.

"My right knee has been bothering me for quite a while. I hoped it would go away, but after an examination and discussion with my team, I decided to have arthroscopic surgery in Switzerland yesterday," he tweeted. 

"After the procedure, the doctors confirmed that it was the right thing to have done and are very confident of a full recovery.

"As a result, I will unfortunately have to miss Dubai, Indian Wells, Bogota, Miami and the French Open. I am grateful for everyone’s support. I can’t wait to be back playing again soon, see you on the grass."

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— Roger Federer (@rogerfederer) February 20, 2020

"We are very disappointed that Roger Federer, our defending champion, has been forced to withdraw from the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships this year,” said Colm McLoughlin, Executive Vice Chairman and CEO of Dubai Duty Free.

"His victory here last year, the 100th title of his career, was a significant milestone, and he went on to enjoy another outstanding season. We wish him well in his recovery and look forward to not only watching his progress during the rest of the season but welcoming him back to Dubai in 2021."

The men's line-up will feature world No 1 Novak Djokovic, 2019 runner-up Stefanos Tsitsipas and 2018 champion Roberto Bautista Agut.