![](\"https:\/\/cdn.images.express.co.uk\/img\/dynamic\/72\/590x\/secondary\/4970265.jpg?r=1695285398650\")
<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
The Laver Cup is back for its sixth edition a year after Roger Federer officially retired at the tournament when it was staged in London\u2019s O2 Arena. At the time he joined forces with his biggest rivals on Team Europe – Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray. But this time around, none of the Big Four signed up to the squad while Europe also lost two big names at the last minute. A co-founder of the team event, Federer has given his thoughts on his Big Four counterparts missing the tournament.<\/p>\n
The 42-year-old is back at the Laver Cup for the 2023 iteration in Vancouver, this time as a visitor following his retirement 12 months ago. With Federer, Nadal, Djokovic and Murray out of the picture, some fans have questioned the strength of the Team Europe lineup. But the 20-time Major champion understands why his rivals aren\u2019t playing.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was always going to be hard, especially with my retirement,\u201d he said of the absence of the rest of the Big Four. \u201cRafa being injured, Novak taking a break, I understood that, obviously, completely. Murray maybe not coming back again, it\u2019s understandable. Look it is what it is, I still think it\u2019s going to be a great weekend.\u201d<\/p>\n
With Nadal still sidelined and Djokovic now taking a brief hiatus until the Paris Masters, Murray is the only player in action this week. But he has opted to play the Zhuhai Championships as the ATP Tour makes its return to China after four years away. And Team Europe took another blow when two top five stars pulled out of the Laver Cup at the 11th hour.<\/p>\n
Click here to join our WhatsApp community to be the first to receive breaking and exclusive tennis news<\/strong><\/p>\n Just in <\/strong> Emma Raducanu opens up on ‘difficultly’ watching tennis and shares return plan[LATEST] <\/strong><\/p>\n World No 4 Holger Rune withdrew as he continues to recover from a back injury that his mum recently revealed was the result of a new service motion he tried earlier this year. Fifth-ranked Stefanos Tsitsipas also pulled out injured after suffering some crushing losses at Greece\u2019s Davis Cup tie over the weekend.<\/p>\n Rune was replaced by Alejandro Davidovich Fokina while the team\u2019s alternate Arthur Fils stepped up when the world No 5 withdrew. However, Federer still believes that the event is full of big names.<\/p>\n He added: \u201cThe greatest players are still here. Obviously everybody was asked to play and we want all the best to play, but it wasn\u2019t possible with schedules and all that stuff. I was a tough guy as well when it came to scheduling. I was very rigorous about which tournaments I could play.\u201d<\/p>\n We use your sign-up to provide content in ways you’ve consented to and to improve our understanding of you. This may include adverts from us and 3rd parties based on our understanding. You can unsubscribe at any time. More info<\/p>\n![](\"https:\/\/cdn.images.express.co.uk\/img\/dynamic\/72\/590x\/secondary\/4970272.jpg?r=1695285398706\")
<\/p>\n
![](\"https:\/\/cdn.images.express.co.uk\/img\/dynamic\/72\/590x\/secondary\/4970278.jpg?r=1695285398943\")
<\/p>\n