Return of Federer's reign?

Rafael Nadal has just announced he will not be playing in Wimbledon this year, which considerably simplifies Roger Federer's path to the title.

The fact that Nadal is Federer's only true foil is a well-known fact; until Nadal came along, Rog was racking up titles, holding the world No. 1 ranking for 237 weeks and standing virtually unbeatable in many settings. But ever since Nadal's dethroning of the crown prince of tennis greatness, wherein Nadal slowly ate away at the tennis champ (he started by dominating the French Open then spread his tentacles into the grand prize, Wimbledon, last year), the question has been whether Federer will ever be No. 1 again, if he can't beat Nadal.

But Nadal's injuries have paved the way for Federer to scoop up some more titles. He knew he might never get another chance at the French if he didn't clean up this year's action when Nadal fell in an earlier round. And this may be the last Wimbledon where he doesn't have to see the leg-churning Spaniard chasing down shots on the other side of the bracket.

The question of who is better, Nadal or Federer, is put to the side for now. (All evidence in the head-to-head points to Nadal, by the way, and Nadal is on virtually the same pace as Federer in terms of titles won at the same age; see Nadal's figures vs. Federer's.)

The real question now is whether Federer can rise again. Not whether he can win a French when he's not facing Nadal, or take this Wimbledon, but whether this year – as Nadal patches his knees – Federer can build up enough skill, confidence and desire to hold Nadal off for a few more years, once Nadal returns to regular tennis.

As Nadal rose, he was crafting his attack, his way to take down Roger, but Federer was just playing tennis. After the Nadal onslaught of recent years, he hasn't exactly had the time to retool and come back to the game without Nadal breathing down his neck (and Federer was sick with mono for a good stretch, too).

But now is his window. He's tied the record for titles and is known as a great, but he hasn't stopped his rival – and worse yet, he hasn't done anything to keep his rival from one day overtaking his records.

This Wimbledon, and how Federer pushes himself to new challenges during it, will determine his career.