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Welcome to Florida Week! As the tours head southeast for the Miami Open, TENNIS.com and Baseline will feature all things Sunshine State. You’ll learn about the personalities, stories, teams and venues that have made Florida one of the tennis capitals of the world. We’ll also be reporting from the Miami Open in Key Biscayne.

As you’ll learn this week, when it comes to tennis, Florida isn’t just a state—it’s a state of mind.

KEY BISCAYNE, Fla.—Roger Federer has entered a new phase of his career, one of a 35-year-old father of four that's still winning major tennis tournaments. Fresh off a title run at Indian Wells, the world No. 6 has arrived in Miami and will only accumulate additional ranking points, as he’s not defending any from last year.

In 2016, the Swiss was scheduled to face Juan Martin del Potro in a star-studded opener in Crandon Park. By the hands of fate, or desires from the tennis gods, the two crowd favorites could meet in the third round this year. (Federer will need to defeat a qualifier or Kontantin Kravchuk first, to uphold his end of the bargain.)

Federer isn’t focusing on the future, though. He is, however, reflecting on the past. A lot has been made of his early 2017 comparing to his dominant 2006, which was the last time he won both the Australian Open and Indian Wells titles.

"At 25 I was winning 90 percent of my matches," Federer said today, when asked to compare the two years. "You also play many more tournaments so you're racing from one to the next. It was an incredible experience being able to keep that level of play for so long at such a high level."

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But the Swiss isn't the same player, or man, he was a decade years ago. He's still on a comeback from his first-ever surgery, and he doesn't have another decade of tennis ahead of him.

"It's definitely different—especially this year is different than any other than I've ever experienced—with the age, with the comeback," Federer said. "I think this is very, very special for me. I definitely see things today differently than I ever have.

"I think it's normal when you understand you're not going to have another 15 years to play."

Federer added that he's not thinking about how many years he has left, and is taking things one year, and sometimes even one month, at a time.

There's another big difference between Federer in his 30s and Federer in his 20s—actually, four of them: Myla, Charlene, Lenny and Leo. On the road, the 18-time Grand Slam champion brings with him a small army of children.

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"I'm coming straight from the pool. That's why I look how I look," Federer said. "We had a good morning. Just trying hard to keep them entertained and educate them—love spending time with them. For me and my wife it's really important that we're always there for them. That's why I'm so happy they're on the road."

When Federer gets down to business, it will be his first Miami match since 2014. Men's main-draw play begins on Wednesday, with Federer's opening match slated for later in the week. He's seeking his third Miami Open title, and his first since 2006.

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With children and confidence in tow, Roger Federer returns to Miami

With children and confidence in tow, Roger Federer returns to Miami

Starting Tuesday, March 21st, watch Tennis Channel Plus for the biggest WTA matches of the day from the Miami Open!​

Tennis Channel Plus will have 12 straight days of WTA Action, including the Quarters, Semis and Final.

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