Roger Federer insists he has still had a "positive" season despite being unable to add to his Grand Slam tally.
The 20-time major winner had looked destined for a box-office final against Rafael Nadal in what would have been the great rivals' first meeting at the US Open but the Swiss legend suffered a shock defeat at the hands of Grigor Dimitrov in the quarter-finals at Flushing Meadows.
Dimitrov had not beaten Federer in any of their previous seven matches, and had taken only two sets off him. But the Bulgarian sealed the biggest win of his career against the 38-year-old in five sets under the Arthur Ashe lights on Tuesday.
Fresh from a heart-breaking loss at the All-England Tennis Club, the abrupt end to Federer's run in New York raised questions whether the 38-year-old can deliver on a record-extending 21st Grand Slam title.
"I don't have the crystal ball. Do you?" said the third seed, after a reporter asked if he expected to win another Grand Slam title at his age.
"We never know. I hope so, of course. I think still it's been a positive season. Disappointing now, but I'll get back up, I'll be all right."
Federer also laid out an aggressive schedule of competitions over the next couple of months.
"Laver Cup, Shanghai, Basel, maybe Paris, London. That's the schedule for now. I don't know if the team have other ideas or not," said Federer. "I'm happy to get a bit of a break now, go back to practice, reassess and attack from there."
In four months, he'll renew his effort to add to his Grand Slam coffers at the Australian Open, where he collected his last title in 2018.
"(I have) got to take the losses. They're part of the game," added Federer. "Looking forward to family time and all that stuff, so life's all right."