Ailing Federer fends off Dimitrov
Print Edition
ROGER Federer overcame a lingering sickness to hold off Grigor Dimitrov 6-4, 6-7 (4), 6-4 yesterday and take his title defense into the semifinals at the Brisbane International.
Federer delayed his opening match at the Australian Open warmup until the fifth day because of a flu-like illness and was playing Dimitrov in the quarterfinals on less than 24 hours rest.
His serve in the first set was almost flawless, dropping just two points, and he appeared to be on course with break-point chances for another straight-set victory over the young Bulgarian — sometimes likened to him because of their similar styles — before Dimitrov rallied.
After wasting a chance to serve out the second set in a nervous 10th game, Dimitrov dominated the tiebreaker and forced a decider.
Federer, after showing signs of fatigue in the second, took a quick break before the third, and then went on a roll to set up three match points in the ninth game. Again Dimitrov rallied, winning five consecutive points and forcing Federer to serve it out — which the 17-time major winner duly did.
“I’m not going to tell you too much, but it was tough in a way,” Federer said of his illness, knowing the Australian Open starts on January 18. “Body is not quite ready, so it’s good to get through it without any issues.”
Federer set up a meeting with 22-year-old Dominic Thiem.
Austria’s Thiem beat third-seeded Marin Cilic of Croatia 2-6, 7-6 (4), 6-4.
The other semifinal match will feature 2015 finalist Milos Raonic of Canada against home favorite Bernard Tomic.
Tomic ended 2014 US Open finalist Kei Nishikori’s streak of three straight semifinal appearances at the Brisbane International with a 6-3, 1-6, 6-3 win, his first over a top 10 player on home soil.
Raonic had a 6-4, 6-4 win over No. 78-ranked Lucas Pouille of France.
Fourth-seeded Angelique Kerber moved into the women’s final by beating Carla Suarez Navarro 6-2, 6-3. She’ll play two-time Australian Open champion Victoria Azarenka, who beat American qualifier Samantha Crawford 6-0, 6-3.
In Auckland, New Zealand, Julia Goerges reached her sixth WTA final when she beat qualifier Tamira Paszek 6-4, 6-2 in the ASB Classic semifinals.
Sloane Stephens was leading 5-2 in the first set of the other semifinal match against third-seeded Caroline Wozniacki when rain halted play.
At the Hopman Cup in Perth, Andy Murray and Heather Watson each had 6-3, 6-4 singles wins over German opponents Alexander Zverev and Sabine Lisicki, and combined to win the mixed doubles by the same margin to secure a 3-0 win.
The Australia Green team sealed a spot in the final against Ukraine with a 2-1 win over France. Nick Kyrgios gave the home team the lead when he beat Kenny De Schepper 6-4, 6-4, but Caroline Garcia leveled for France with a 6-4, 7-6 (7) win over Daria Gavrilova, sending it to a mixed doubles decider, which the Australian duo won 6-4, 2-6, 11-9.
In Shenzhen, south China, Agnieszka Radwanska advanced to the final of the Shenzhen Open with a 6-2, 6-4 win over Anna-Lena Friedsam yesterday, ensuring she will jump past Maria Sharapova to No. 4 in the rankings.
Radwanska will face American Alison Riske in the final.
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