Jo-Wilfried Tsonga has requested a wild card for the Australian Open as a part of his comeback in the 2022 season. Will Tsonga come back?
I think most people thought he was retired due to his back problems, but he is training again and keen to do a comeback.
“I am working hard to come back and if it is not at the Australian Open, it will be elsewhere,” he told French press.
Tsonga is a former world number 5 and reached the 2008 final at the Australian Open (lost to Djokovic), but currently, he is No. 257 in the rankings. His next event will be an exhibition in France called Rouen Open.
I always found Tsonga fun to watch with a big, aggressive game based on powerful shots mainly from the serve and the forehand. It would be interesting to see him back on the tour and I think the story of Andy Murray’s successful return after several hip surgeries, is inspiring players to consider a comeback on the tour.
What about Federer?
Federer’s return to the tour is further away. He even said in an interview that he would be positively surprised if he returned for the 2022 Wimbledon. But he wants to come back to the tour and leave it on his own terms, it was just clear from his replies that he wasn’t stressed to do so. He has done it successfully before and felt confident that he could do it again.
Rafa, on the other hand, looks set for a return at the Australian Open 2022 with a warm-up event happening in Abu Dhabi before that.
We’re all looking forward to the 2022 ATP season. See the first half of the calendar here.
