Federer mystic fades after another setback
Source: Agencies |
July 27, 2013, Saturday
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ROGER Federer slumped to a stunning defeat against No. 55 Daniel Brands in the Swiss Open second round on Thursday in Gstaad, Switzerland, his third straight tournament exit against a low-ranked opponent.
Federer had trouble handling Brands' serve and big forehands on the clay surface in the thin mountain air. The German right-hander won 6-3, 6-4 in just 65 minutes.
"I wasn't consistent enough in the end," said Federer, who failed on five break-point chances. "He was serving well and I couldn't do enough with my return."
The 31-year-old Swiss star has now lost to players ranked Nos. 116, 114 and 55 in the past month at Wimbledon; Hamburg, Germany; and now in front of his home fans.
Third-seeded Janko Tipsarevic of Serbia was also eliminated in straight sets on Thursday, piling up the unforced errors, including six double faults, to lose to Robin Haase of the Netherlands 6-2, 6-2.
Two former Swiss Open champions advanced to the quarterfinals.
Marcel Granollers of Spain, the 2011 winner, beat Federico Delbonis of Argentina 6-2, 7-5, and 2008 champion Victor Hanescu of Romania led Roberto Bautista 7-6 (2), 3-2 when the Spaniard retired with a back injury.
Federer's own ranking of No. 5 is his lowest in a decade since he started his run of 17 Grand Slam singles titles at Wimbledon in 2003.
Federer saved a first match point by serving an ace when trailing 5-3, and a second in the next game with a forehand winner.
Brands, who took a set off Federer in a second-round loss at Hamburg when they first played on tour, then clinched victory with a service winner.
"For sure the altitude has helped me," Brands said. "I served well and put pressure on him from the very beginning."
Defeat spoiled Federer's return to Gstaad for the first time since he won the title in 2004 - and where he debuted on the ATP Tour in 1998 as a 17-year-old ranked No. 702.
Federer is slated to return next month at the Montreal Masters, and then defend his Cincinnati Masters title before the US Open begins on August 26.
In the US, top-seeded John Isner escaped with a hard-fought three-set win over 19-year-old wild-card entry Christian Harrison at the Atlanta Open on Thursday, making an unconvincing advance to the quarterfinals.
Isner is ranked No. 22 in the world while Harrison is No. 373, and was playing just his second ATP main draw match but the top seed only got through 7-6 (9), 4-6, 7-5.
In the quarterfinals, Isner will play Jeff Blake, a 6-3, 6-2 winner over eighth-seeded Evgeny Donskoy 6-3, 6-2; Ryan Harrison - Christian's older brother - will play Santiago Giraldo; second-seeded Kevin Anderson will meet Denis Istomin; and seventh-seeded Lleyton Hewitt will play third-seeded Ivan Dodig.
Anderson beat Matthew Ebden 6-7 (7), 6-2, 6-2; Istomin edged fifth-seeded Lu Yen-hsun 7-5, 6-2; and Giraldo led Michael Russell 5-7, 6-3, 3-0 when the American retired.
Federer had trouble handling Brands' serve and big forehands on the clay surface in the thin mountain air. The German right-hander won 6-3, 6-4 in just 65 minutes.
"I wasn't consistent enough in the end," said Federer, who failed on five break-point chances. "He was serving well and I couldn't do enough with my return."
The 31-year-old Swiss star has now lost to players ranked Nos. 116, 114 and 55 in the past month at Wimbledon; Hamburg, Germany; and now in front of his home fans.
Third-seeded Janko Tipsarevic of Serbia was also eliminated in straight sets on Thursday, piling up the unforced errors, including six double faults, to lose to Robin Haase of the Netherlands 6-2, 6-2.
Two former Swiss Open champions advanced to the quarterfinals.
Marcel Granollers of Spain, the 2011 winner, beat Federico Delbonis of Argentina 6-2, 7-5, and 2008 champion Victor Hanescu of Romania led Roberto Bautista 7-6 (2), 3-2 when the Spaniard retired with a back injury.
Federer's own ranking of No. 5 is his lowest in a decade since he started his run of 17 Grand Slam singles titles at Wimbledon in 2003.
Federer saved a first match point by serving an ace when trailing 5-3, and a second in the next game with a forehand winner.
Brands, who took a set off Federer in a second-round loss at Hamburg when they first played on tour, then clinched victory with a service winner.
"For sure the altitude has helped me," Brands said. "I served well and put pressure on him from the very beginning."
Defeat spoiled Federer's return to Gstaad for the first time since he won the title in 2004 - and where he debuted on the ATP Tour in 1998 as a 17-year-old ranked No. 702.
Federer is slated to return next month at the Montreal Masters, and then defend his Cincinnati Masters title before the US Open begins on August 26.
In the US, top-seeded John Isner escaped with a hard-fought three-set win over 19-year-old wild-card entry Christian Harrison at the Atlanta Open on Thursday, making an unconvincing advance to the quarterfinals.
Isner is ranked No. 22 in the world while Harrison is No. 373, and was playing just his second ATP main draw match but the top seed only got through 7-6 (9), 4-6, 7-5.
In the quarterfinals, Isner will play Jeff Blake, a 6-3, 6-2 winner over eighth-seeded Evgeny Donskoy 6-3, 6-2; Ryan Harrison - Christian's older brother - will play Santiago Giraldo; second-seeded Kevin Anderson will meet Denis Istomin; and seventh-seeded Lleyton Hewitt will play third-seeded Ivan Dodig.
Anderson beat Matthew Ebden 6-7 (7), 6-2, 6-2; Istomin edged fifth-seeded Lu Yen-hsun 7-5, 6-2; and Giraldo led Michael Russell 5-7, 6-3, 3-0 when the American retired.
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