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ROGER FEDERER

Federer eases into Rotterdam quarter-finals

Two-time champion Roger Federer moved swiftly into the quarter-finals of the Rotterdam World Tennis tournament on Thursday with a 6-3, 6-4 win over home hope Thiemo de Bakker.

Published: 14 February 2013 22:06 CET
Federer eases into Rotterdam quarter-finals
File Photo: Mike McCune

The 62-minute victory sent the Swiss top seed into a Friday clash with Frenchman Julien Benneteau who he will be facing for the sixth time.

World number two Federer is playing in Rotterdam for the eighth time and has never gone out before the quarters, winning titles in 2005 and 2012.

"I'm happy, the conditions are very quick and Thiemo is a dangerous opponent," said Federer.

"I'm glad to go through and be in the quarter-finals again," he said.

"It was a good win."

Second seed Juan Martin Del Potro said he's not envious of the world top four as the big Argentine beat qualifier Ernests Gulbis 7-6 (7/5), 6-3.

"I know that I can improve," said the seventh-ranked 2009 US Open champion, who next faces Jarkko Nieminen after the Finn dispatched German qualifier Matthias Bachinger 6-3, 5-7, 6-3.

"But the top four are there for a reason, they are playing better than me, I know that I can beat them, but I need to improve my level"

Del Potro, who lost the final a year ago to Federer, needed just over 90 minutes to beat Latvia's Gulbis, who once stood inside the top 30 before falling to his current 132.

Marcos Baghdatis handed Frenchman Richard Gasquet only his second loss of the season as the Cypriot scored a 6-4, 6-4 win to reach the quarter-finals.

Gasquet lined up in Rotterdam as the fourth seed, having already won two tour titles this season and boasting an unbeaten record apart from a defeat to compatriot Jo-Wilfried Tsonga at the Australian Open.

But the world number 10 never got going against Baghdatis, who had also beaten him at the Olympics last year.

Baghdatis won in 76 minutes, with nine aces and two breaks of serve, and will now face Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov on Friday.

UPDATE:

Frenchman Julien Benneteau sent defending champion Roger Federer crashing out of the Rotterdam World Tennis tournament on Friday with a stunning 6-3, 7-5 quarter-final upset.

Federer, who lifted the trophy in his last two appearances in 2005 and 2012, last suffered defeat in the event against Tim Henman in 2004.

"I'm very disappointed, I have some regrets about this match," said Federer, who came back from two sets to love down to beat Benneteau in the third round of Wimbledon last year.

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ROGER FEDERER

Is this the end of the road for Swiss tennis legend Roger Federer?

Roger Federer is talking optimistically about returning to his "highest level" after knee surgery, but does tennis have to start adjusting to a future without the Swiss star?

Published: 11 June 2020 16:22 CEST
Is this the end of the road for Swiss tennis legend Roger Federer?
Is it the end of the line for Roger? Photo: Martin BUREAU / AFP

The 20-time Grand Slam winner announced on Wednesday that he would be sidelined until 2021 after his second operation in a matter of months.

Federer remains upbeat, tweeting: “I plan to take the necessary time to be 100 percent ready to play at my highest level.”

In some ways 2020 is a good season to miss after the coronavirus ravaged the tennis schedule. Writing Federer off in the past has proved dangerous.

He returned from a six-month injury lay-off to claim the Australian Open in 2017, winning his eighth Wimbledon crown later that year.

But he will be 40 in 2021 and is now heading into uncharted territory.

Despite his groaning trophy cabinet, there are two factors that will motivate Federer to keep going — the risk of losing his grip on the men's Grand Slam title record and a missing Olympics singles gold medal.

Rafael Nadal has 19 majors, just one shy of Federer's mark and Djokovic has 17.

Spain's Nadal will be fancied to draw level with Federer at the French Open, rescheduled for September, while few would bet against Djokovic winning in New York weeks earlier.

In April, Federer said he was “devastated” when Wimbledon was cancelled for the first time since World War II. Last year he fell agonisingly short at the All England Club, failing to convert two championship points on his own serve against Djokovic.

The Wimbledon grass probably remains his best chance of adding to his Grand Slam collection — he has not won the US Open since 2008 and his only title at Roland Garros came in 2009.

Even though Federer has slipped from the very pinnacle of the game, he is still a major threat to Nadal and Djokovic.

'Golden' ambitions

Last year, the world number four had a 53-10 win-loss record and he reached the semi-finals at the Australian Open in January in his only tournament this year.

Federer, who is still six ATP titles short of Jimmy Connors' all-time record of 109, has one glaring omission from his CV — the Olympic title.

The Swiss won doubles gold in Beijing in 2008 with compatriot Stan Wawrinka but lost in the singles final to Andy Murray in London four years later.

The postponed Tokyo Games will almost certainly be Federer's last opportunity to complete a career “golden” Grand Slam — he will turn 40 on the day of the closing ceremony next year.

Tennis will feel the loss of the elegant Federer keenly when he walks off the court for the last time.

Djokovic and Nadal have been the dominant forces in recent years but the Swiss remains the biggest draw and last month topped Forbes' list of the world's highest-earning athletes.

His last appearance on court was in front of nearly 52,000 fans — touted by organisers as a world record for tennis — at a charity match against Nadal in Cape Town in February.

Federer is nearly always the crowd favourite wherever he plays and has proved a perfect ambassador for the sport since he won his first Grand Slam title in 2003.

He certainly expects to be back and competitive next year.

“I will be missing my fans and the tour dearly but I will look forward to seeing everyone back on tour at the start of the 2021 season,” he tweeted.

The avalanche of support from his adoring fans showed they would miss him too, but they will have to get used to a time when he is gone for good.

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