2018 ATP Preview: No. 2, Roger Federer

As a preview of 2018, Baseline is taking a look at all the Top 10 finishers from the ATP and WTA.

See No. 3 here.

2

Heading into 2017, no one knew what a 35-year-old Roger Federer who hadn't played a match in six months would be capable of. It turned out, the answer was a lot.

In the semis and final Australian Open, Federer won back-to-back five-setters against Stan Wawrinka and Rafael Nadal.

He went on to pull off the Sunshine Double (winning both Miami and Indian Wells):

During the grass-court season, the 36-year-old captured his eighth Wimbledon title and 19th Grand Slam:

He later defeated Nadal for the fourth time in 2017 when he won the Shanghai ATP Masters 1000:

A key difference this year, some say, has been his improved backhand. This was epitomized when Federer needed only a backhand return and a backhand pass break Nadal's serve in the opening game of the Shanghai final.

Outlook for 2018

Federer is now 36. It would be unreasonable for us to expect him repeat these kinds of results, but then again, what about what we saw this year was reasonable?

Friday, December 29: Novak Djokovic begins his comeback at the Mubadala World Tennis Championship in Abu Dhabi against either Roberto Bautista Agut or Andrey Rublev.

Not before 10:00 a.m. ET LIVE on Tennis Channel Plus. GET PLUS NOW at tnns.ch/TCPlus

Saturday, December 30: Roger Federer looks to continue his remarkable resurgence at the Hopman Cup in Perth in singles and mixed doubles competition.

4:30 a.m ET LIVE on Tennis Channel Plus. GET PLUS NOW at tnns.ch/TCPlus

Saturday, December 30: Serena Williams returns at the Mubadala World Tennis Championship in Abu Dhabi, in her first match since the birth of her first child, against the 2017 French Open champion, Jelena Ostapenko.

8:00 a.m ET LIVE on Tennis Channel. Additional airings at 2:00 p.m., 8:00 p.m. and 11:30 p.m. ET.