Australian Open: Federer hands out lesson to Tomic
Swiss legend downs teenager to reach last-eight, China’s Li knocked out.
MELBOURNE:
Roger Federer handed out a masterclass to Australian teenager Bernard Tomic as he reached the quarter-finals on a day of tears and drama at the Australian Open.
While Federer was at his mesmerising best and Rafael Nadal also went through, China’s Li Na left in floods of tears after she fell victim to an astonishing comeback by hobbling women’s champion Kim Clijsters.
Ear-splitting boos greeted Tomas Berdych’s win over Nicolas Almagro as the Czech player refused to shake hands at the end of their stormy match.
I had to work hard: Federer
Nineteen-year-old Tomic, the great hope of Australian tennis, could only shake his head in disbelief as Federer dug into his bag of tricks and unleashed his full repertoire of unreachable drops and a balletic backhand smashes.
“I thought I played a really good match,” said Federer, who won 6-4, 6-2, 6-2. “I knew I had to, anything else and I wouldn’t have got the job done.
“The score would suggest otherwise. If you hadn’t seen the match you would think straight sets, no problem, but I had to work extremely hard and Bernard showed why he’s going to be a great player.”
Nadal, seeking his 11th major victory and his second Open crown, beat fellow Spanish left-hander Feliciano Lopez 6-4, 6-4, 6-2 to reach the quarter-finals for the sixth straight year.
“I’ve started the tournament playing really well this time,” said Nadal. “I felt I’ve played well from the first match and today I played another complete match.”
“It was a very hot day and it’s a positive to win in straight sets, especially in these conditions.”
Nadal will play Berdych – who won a hard-fought match 4-6, 7-6, 7-6, 7-6 and also accused Almagro of hitting a ball at his face – in the quarter-finals, while Federer has a testing match-up with Juan Martin del Potro.
Clijsters downs Li
In the women’s draw, Belgium’s Clijsters looked on the verge of quitting when she rolled her left ankle in the first set, and despite gritting her teeth and playing on she looked down and out facing four match points in the second-set tiebreak.
But the despairing Li saw Clijsters save all four, culminating in a brave drop-and-lob combination before the Belgian claimed a famous 4-6, 7-6 (8/6), 6-4 win.
“It has to be,” said a disbelieving Clijsters, when asked if it was her greatest comeback. “I can’t believe I won. I knew it was going to be a tough match but I didn’t expect this.”
Victoria Azarenka defeated Czech Iveta Benesova 6-2, 6-2 to set up a quarter-final with Agnieszka Radwanska, who brushed aside Germany’s Julia Goerges 6-1, 6-1.
Clijsters will play world number one Caroline Wozniacki, who sent Serbia’s Jelena Jankovic out in straight sets.
Bopanna, Bhupathi knocked out
Meanwhile, in the men’s doubles draw, the Indian pairing of Rohan Bopanna and Mahesh Bhupathi lost to American duo, Scot Lipsky and Rajeev Ram, 7-6 (8/6), 6-2. The fourth-seeded pair conceded 11 unforced errors in an encounter lasting a little over 51 minutes to lose in the third round.
Selected results
Nadal bt Lopez
6-4, 6-4, 6-2
Berdych bt Almagro
4-6, 7-6, 7-6, 7-6
Del Potro bt Kohlschreiber
6-4, 6-2, 6-1
Federer bt Tomic
6-4, 6-2, 6-2
Azarenka bt Benesova
6-2, 6-2
Clijsters bt Li
4-6, 7-6, 6-4
Wozniacki bt Jankovic
6-0, 7-5
Rafael Nadal
“In 2010 I retired because I couldn’t continue and last year I had a problem in the second or third game of the match. Now I’m in the quarter-finals. Hopefully, it won’t happen this time.”
Kim Clijsters
“It definitely crossed my mind [to pull out] but I knew if I could just try to let the medication sink in, the pain would go away and then maybe with the adrenaline I could just fly through it.”
Published in The Express Tribune, January 23rd, 2012.
Roger Federer handed out a masterclass to Australian teenager Bernard Tomic as he reached the quarter-finals on a day of tears and drama at the Australian Open.
While Federer was at his mesmerising best and Rafael Nadal also went through, China’s Li Na left in floods of tears after she fell victim to an astonishing comeback by hobbling women’s champion Kim Clijsters.
Ear-splitting boos greeted Tomas Berdych’s win over Nicolas Almagro as the Czech player refused to shake hands at the end of their stormy match.
I had to work hard: Federer
Nineteen-year-old Tomic, the great hope of Australian tennis, could only shake his head in disbelief as Federer dug into his bag of tricks and unleashed his full repertoire of unreachable drops and a balletic backhand smashes.
“I thought I played a really good match,” said Federer, who won 6-4, 6-2, 6-2. “I knew I had to, anything else and I wouldn’t have got the job done.
“The score would suggest otherwise. If you hadn’t seen the match you would think straight sets, no problem, but I had to work extremely hard and Bernard showed why he’s going to be a great player.”
Nadal, seeking his 11th major victory and his second Open crown, beat fellow Spanish left-hander Feliciano Lopez 6-4, 6-4, 6-2 to reach the quarter-finals for the sixth straight year.
“I’ve started the tournament playing really well this time,” said Nadal. “I felt I’ve played well from the first match and today I played another complete match.”
“It was a very hot day and it’s a positive to win in straight sets, especially in these conditions.”
Nadal will play Berdych – who won a hard-fought match 4-6, 7-6, 7-6, 7-6 and also accused Almagro of hitting a ball at his face – in the quarter-finals, while Federer has a testing match-up with Juan Martin del Potro.
Clijsters downs Li
In the women’s draw, Belgium’s Clijsters looked on the verge of quitting when she rolled her left ankle in the first set, and despite gritting her teeth and playing on she looked down and out facing four match points in the second-set tiebreak.
But the despairing Li saw Clijsters save all four, culminating in a brave drop-and-lob combination before the Belgian claimed a famous 4-6, 7-6 (8/6), 6-4 win.
“It has to be,” said a disbelieving Clijsters, when asked if it was her greatest comeback. “I can’t believe I won. I knew it was going to be a tough match but I didn’t expect this.”
Victoria Azarenka defeated Czech Iveta Benesova 6-2, 6-2 to set up a quarter-final with Agnieszka Radwanska, who brushed aside Germany’s Julia Goerges 6-1, 6-1.
Clijsters will play world number one Caroline Wozniacki, who sent Serbia’s Jelena Jankovic out in straight sets.
Bopanna, Bhupathi knocked out
Meanwhile, in the men’s doubles draw, the Indian pairing of Rohan Bopanna and Mahesh Bhupathi lost to American duo, Scot Lipsky and Rajeev Ram, 7-6 (8/6), 6-2. The fourth-seeded pair conceded 11 unforced errors in an encounter lasting a little over 51 minutes to lose in the third round.
Selected results
Nadal bt Lopez
6-4, 6-4, 6-2
Berdych bt Almagro
4-6, 7-6, 7-6, 7-6
Del Potro bt Kohlschreiber
6-4, 6-2, 6-1
Federer bt Tomic
6-4, 6-2, 6-2
Azarenka bt Benesova
6-2, 6-2
Clijsters bt Li
4-6, 7-6, 6-4
Wozniacki bt Jankovic
6-0, 7-5
Rafael Nadal
“In 2010 I retired because I couldn’t continue and last year I had a problem in the second or third game of the match. Now I’m in the quarter-finals. Hopefully, it won’t happen this time.”
Kim Clijsters
“It definitely crossed my mind [to pull out] but I knew if I could just try to let the medication sink in, the pain would go away and then maybe with the adrenaline I could just fly through it.”
Published in The Express Tribune, January 23rd, 2012.