TENNIS:ROGER FEDERER walked off the court at the US Open, while his opponent celebrated. His eyes were downcast, his face glum. His tournament had ended minutes earlier, far earlier than expected, in a quarter-final defeat to Tomas Berdych of the Czech Republic.
Berdych, seeded sixth, has long held a reputation as a solid player who struggled in big matches. He dispelled that notion late on Wednesday, as he jumped to an early lead on Federer, withstood a rally and held on to win 7-6 6-4 3-6 6-3.
Afterward there were questions about Federer’s lay-off, which resulted when Mardy Fish withdrew from their scheduled fourth-round match. Federer declined to use that as an excuse. Instead, he noted he had won Wimbledon one year when he had more than six days off during the tournament.
“I don’t think the schedule was a problem,” Federer said. “But who knows? I don’t put that down as a negative, really. I just didn’t come up with the goods tonight.”
It was Berdych’s first night match at Arthur Ashe Stadium, and he made it count. The critical point came in the fourth set, on break point, with Berdych returning. After a brief rally, he hit a forehand so hard the ball skipped into the corner before Federer had a chance to really move. At that point, all Berdych had to do was hold serve. And hold serve he did.
“It couldn’t be better,” Berdych said in a television interview on court. “There is no better feeling. There is no better moment than this one.”
Berdych will now play Andy Murray in the semi-finals in a US Open that suddenly seems more wide open than in recent years, with the semi-finals this year played without Federer and Rafael Nadal, who withdrew before the tournament began, citing a knee injury.
The final weekend at the Open will feel different, at least on the men’s side. The tournament, despite the rain in recent days, is more or less on schedule as well. Perhaps the men’s final will even be played on Sunday, a break from four straight Monday finals.
Berdych is no pushover. When Murray, who beat Marin Cilic in four tight sets earlier in the day, was asked over and over about Federer before his first set had concluded, Murray said: “Tomas Berdych is a great player as well. Let’s show him some respect, too.”
Murray and Federer spent most of the summer trading titles, as if on some sort of cosmic collision course. Both made the final at Wimbledon, which Federer won. Both made the Olympics singles final, where Murray triumphed. When the US Open draw showed Murray in the same half as Federer, it was easy to consider their summer rubber match the most enticing contest of this tournament.
Berdych did not get the memo. He rarely does when he plays against Federer. Berdych stunned Federer in the quarter-finals at Wimbledon in 2010, handing Federer his earliest loss at Wimbledon in eight years.
Whenever they played afterward, Berdych always seemed to give Federer trouble, with his big serve and formidable groundstrokes.
Combined with a bevy of unforced errors by Federer, they allowed Berdych to take the first two sets rather easily. The crowd in the Arthur Ashe sat stunned, unsure of what to make of Federer’s vulnerable night.
“With my game, I’m able to make him some trouble,” Berdych said. “Even if he’s playing well, and we play a match together, there is something in my game that he doesn’t like.”
Federer’s magical summer in which he returned to the number one ranking ended on Wednesday. Murray’s will continue. Should Murray make the final at the Open, he would pass Nadal for the number three spot in the world rankings.
Early into his quarter-final, Murray looked dishevelled and off his game. He scolded himself after errant shots. He stomped around the baseline. He even bounced his racket halfway across the court. Eventually, Murray awakened and regained his form and defeated Marin Cilic 3-6 7-6 6-2 6-0.
Federer repeated his favourite recent line on Wednesday, even after the upset. “I’ve said it 100 times,” he said. “It’s been amazing. Obviously I don’t need to make too much about that. I just lost a match.” This loss, in a high-quality affair, opened up the draw for the semi-finals. No Federer. No Nadal. And still, a tournament left to win.
Men’s singles fourth round: (7) Juan Martin Del Potro (Arg) bt (20) Andy Roddick (USA) 6-7 (1-7) 7-6 (7-4) 6-2 6-4, (2) Novak Djokovic (Ser) bt (18) Stanislas Wawrinka (Swi) 6-4 6-1 3-1 ret. Quarter-finals: (3) Andy Murray (Brit) bt (12) Marin Cilic (Cro) 3-6 7-6 (7-4) 6-2 6-0, (6) Tomas Berdych (Cze) bt (1) Roger Federer (Swi) 7-6 (7-1) 6-4 3-6 6-3.
Women’s singles quarter-final: (4) Serena Williams (US) bt (12) Ana Ivanovic (Ser) 6-1 6-3.
WILLIAMS BREEZES INTO LAST FOUR
Serena Williams breezed into the semi-finals of the women’s singles with an emphatic straight-sets victory over Ana Ivanovic.
The American, who sent an ominous warning to her rivals on Monday with a “double bagel” win over Andrea Hlavackova, hardly gave the 12th-seeded Serbian a look-in at Arthur Ashe Stadium as she powered to a 6-1 6-3 triumph in just 58 minutes.
The fourth seed will face Italy’s Sara Errani in the last four, the 10th seed having earlier continued her remarkable season by beating best friend and doubles partner Roberta Vinci 6-2 6-4.
Williams, 30, is the favourite to win a fourth US Open crown.
New York Times Service
