In this Feb 7, 2020 photo, Switzerland's Roger Federer plays a return to Spain's Rafael Nadal during their tennis match at The Match in Africa at the Cape Town Stadium, in Cape Town. (RODGER BOSCH / AFP)

Former world number one Roger Federer said on Friday he was excited to return to competitive tennis at next week’s Qatar Open after a year-long absence.

The Doha Open starts on Monday

The 20-time Grand Slam champion has not played a tournament since his Australian Open semi-final exit against Novak Djokovic last year, undergoing two knee surgeries since.

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“Here we are, about to take off to fly to Doha. It’s been a year since my last event,” Federer, 39, said in a video posted on his Twitter feed.

“I can tell I’m very excited... it’s been a long and hard road. I know I’m not at the finish line yet but it’s good, I feel I’m in a good place, I’ve been practising very well and I just feel really pumped up.”

The Doha Open starts on Monday.