Following his defeat in the Qatar Open quarterfinals on Thursday, Roger Federer has decided to opt-out of the upcoming ATP 500 event in Dubai.

The 39-year-old Swiss, who returned to action after two knee operations last year, beat Briton Dan Evans in three sets in his comeback match in Doha but lost 3-6 6-1 7-5 to Georgia's Nikoloz Basilashvili in the next round.

Despite the early exit, though, the 20-time Grand Slam champion is looking forward to playing the upcoming grasscourt season with full fitness.

"I'm actually happy that I was able to play back-to-back three-set matches against top players. That's an important step forward to me," Federer told reporters following his defeat against the Georgian, which called an end to his first event in 405 days.

"Like I said, I'm not 100 percent yet. I can feel it, I can see it. From that standpoint, (what's) important is to be 100 percent by the grass court season. ...I'm still building up."

"So this is a stepping stone. I'm actually happy how I felt today on court overall."

Federer later posted on his social media that he has decided to withdraw from the upcoming ATP 500 event in Dubai to focus on training instead.

"It's been great to be back on the @atptour, loved every minute playing in Doha once again."

"I've decided it's best to go back to training and as a result, I've decided to withdraw from Dubai next week."

World No. 2 Rafa Nadal has also pulled out of the Dubai Duty Free event, which runs from March 14-20.

Federer is an eight-time Dubai champion and claimed his 100th tour-level title at the tournament in 2019. He has already decided not to defend his Miami Open title at the March 22-April 4 Masters 1000 event.

Federer initially eyed a return at last month's Australian Open, but slow progress in his recovery convinced him to skip the Grand Slam and he said he would play in events that would help him regain his fitness before Wimbledon.

Tied with Nadal on 20 Grand Slam titles, Federer has won Wimbledon eight times.

"We've just got to take a real good look at the schedule and... see how much workload the body and knee can still take, what's the best way to prepare for basically the beginning of the season for me, which is the grass court season," he added.

(With input from agencies)

(Cover image: Roger Federer returns the ball during his match against Nikoloz Basilashvili of Georgia at the Qatar Open's quarterfinals in Doha, Qatar, March 11, 2021. /CFP)