Australian Open tournament director Craig Tiley has claimed that every big-name tennis player, including Roger Federer have confirmed their entry for the 2021 tournament.
This is despite the fact the Swiss maestro hasn't actually returned to full match fitness yet following a long injury layoff.
Federer, whose last competitive match was at the 2020 Melbourne Grand Slam, underwent two operations on his right knee last year and was initially confident he would return to action at the season-opening major in Australia.
However, he admitted a fortnight ago that he was "in a race against time" to be fit for the Australian Open before his coach Ivan Ljubicic revealed this week that he is back in training.
With the Australian Open pushed back to February 8-21, Federer has been given a few more weeks to get match with Tiley revealing the 20-time Grand Slam preferred the later start date.
"We have a commitment from every player in the world to be in Australia. It’s the start of the season, and anything can happen with that entry list, but the commitment is there. Every player, including Roger Federer, has committed," he said.
"We have been in touch with him and his team and it’s been three days now, he’s hit for the first time in Dubai. He’s in his normal pre-season training routine.
He added: "He did say to us that February 8 was a more suitable date for him in terms of preparing for the Australian Open. But a lot will depend on how he responds to his surgery in the next two to three weeks of training."