Watch: Roger Federer back in training after 8 months, treats fans to a series of exquisite forehands

Roger Federer was last seen in action at the 2021 Wimbledon Championships, where he lost in the quarterfinals in straight sets to Hubert Hurkacz. Eight months and another knee surgery later, the 20-time Grand Slam champion is finally back on the practice courts.

In a video he uploaded to Instagram on Saturday, the Swiss treated his fans to a series of forehand bombs, each one more picturesque than the previous. Understandably, the short clip went viral the moment it was posted, garnering more than a million views and close to 200,000 likes within the hour.

Here is the video from Federer's official Instagram handle:

The post was quickly populated by his fans, with many wishing him well on his impending return to action. It should be noted that the training video adheres to the timeline presented by the World No. 27's coach Severin Luthi earlier this month, where he had remarked that the 40-year-old would begin racquet training soon.

Luthi added that it was hard to imagine the 20-time Grand Slam champion being fit in time for this year's Wimbledon, a statement that may turn out to be true after all.

Roger Federer fell out of the top 20 in the ATP rankings for the first time in 2 decades earlier this year

Earlier this year, Roger Federer fell out of the top 20 for the first time in two decades

The knee injury that was exacerbated after the Wimbledon loss, along with its subsequent rehab, forced Roger Federer to skip the US Open at the end of 2021 as well as the 2022 Australian Open.

The hiatus took a massive hit on his ranking, dropping him to as low as World No. 30 by the end of January. It marked the first time the former World No. 1 left the top 20 since 2001. The 40-year-old has since climbed to World No. 27 due to other players dropping points.

The 20-time Grand Slam champion has not been ranked outside the top 30 since 2000. That particular record could be at risk at the upcoming Miami Masters, however.

The 40-year-old is defending 500 ranking points in the tournament, courtesy of his title run in the 2019 edition. The points are set to drop on April 4, taking him from 1665 points to 1165 points and potentially out of the top 40.