Roger Federer announced on Monday he will skip Roland Garros to better prepare for the grass-court and hard court seasons.

After a stellar start to 2017 in which he won the Australian Open, Indian Wells and Miami Open, the 35-year-old feels he needs to manage his playing schedule and recovery time.

The 18-time Grand Slam winner won the French Open back in 2009 and also pulled out of the event through injury last year.

In a statement on rogerfederer.com on Monday evening, he said: “Regrettably, I’ve decided not to participate in the French Open. I’ve been working really hard, both on and off the court, during the last month but in order to try and play on the ATP World Tour for many years to come, I feel it’s best to skip the clay court season this year and prepare for the grass and hard court seasons.

“The start to the year has been magical for me but I need to recognize that scheduling will be the key to my longevity moving forward. Thus, my team and I concluded today that playing just one event on clay was not in the best interest of my tennis and physical preparation for the remainder of the season. I will miss the French fans, who have always been so supportive and I look forward to seeing them at Roland Garros next year.”