Roger Federer warns he’s just getting into his groove ahead of week two of Wimbledon

Roger Federer has warned the rest of the men’s draw he is just getting into his groove at Wimbledon and approaching a zen-like state.

Federer is bidding for a place in his 18^th quarter-final at the event when he takes on Lorenzo Sonego in the third match on Centre Court on Monday.

And after coming through four sets against Britain’s Cameron Norrie, one of the most consistent players on tour, the 39-year-old said he was brimming with confidence for the first time since undergoing knee surgery.

“I definitely feel like I’ve gotten my rhythm now at this point,” he said. “For the most part I was still trying to play on the front foot, play forward. When you do that…you’re always going to miss some, and the important thing is that I accept those and move on.

“I thought I had a really excellent attitude [against Norrie]. Maybe one of the first times I just felt very much at peace out there, really sort of a tranquillity I guess to everything I was doing – where I wanted to serve, how I wanted to win my service games, then how I took misses, how I took wrong choices.

“I just brushed them off. It was like we’re moving on, things are going well. I know it’s the big picture that matters.

“I was sitting on the change of ends, it was just empty thoughts, no bad, no positive, just sitting there and relaxing. This is how I want it to be. I think that for me is a very positive sign.”

There were big question marks over Federer’s form going into Wimbledon. He reached the fourth round of the French Open but pulled out to protect his knee ahead of his favourite Grand Slam on the calendar.

A second-round defeat at his traditional warm-up event in Halle raised question marks, which was heightened by an up-and-down performance against Adrian Mannarino in the opening round at Wimbledon.

Instead, he has played himself into being arguably the biggest threat once more to Novak Djokovic, a player he still sees as the overwhelming favourite to win the title and level with Federer on 20 career Grand Slams.

“It’s very, very impressive to see what he’s doing this year,” he said. “He’s done incredibly well in Australia, now again in Paris. That was exceptional. He looks like the big favourite here going into whatever round he goes into. He’s going to be tough to beat.”

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