Federer, Roddick Beat Slow Conditions at Wimbledon

Posted on June 28, 2005

World No. 1 and two-time defending Wimbledon champ Roger Federer and 2004 runner-up Andy Roddick advanced into the quarterfinals in straight sets Monday at the All-England Club, just two wins from renewing their grasscourt rivalry in a much-anticipated repeat of last year's final.

Federer stopped former No. 1 and No. 23 seed Juan Carlos Ferrero 6-3, 6-4, 7-6(6), while the No. 2-seeded Roddick stopped another claycourter in No. 15 Guillermo Coria 6-3, 7-6(1), 6-4.

"Today I thought it was extremely slow somehow," Federer said. "That was my feeling. Maybe it's because of him. He was not missing. He was making me -- playing me left to right, as well. Never really had the -- it was very hard to overpower him, I thought, where normally this is really my strength."

Against Coria, Roddick was eventually able to work on his approaches and the burgeoning net game so important to further challenging Federer as he did in last year's final.

"The first set (Coria) was a little off. He was missing from the baseline, kind of was spraying balls," Roddick said. "I stayed back a little bit more. Then he kind of got grooved in a little bit more. That's when you have to kind of try to put the (net) pressure on a little bit more. I was able to do that today."
FOLDHERE

No. 3 seed and former champ Lleyton Hewitt kept himself in the mix with a 6-4, 6-4, 6-7(7), 6-3 victory over No. 24-seeded American net-rusher Taylor Dent.

"He started out a little tentative," Hewitt said of Dent. "First game, he hit two double faults for me to break serve. But you don't get that many opportunities to break his serve, so when you get those half chances, you really have to take them."

Dent concurred on giving away too many key opportunities in the match.

"There were times in each set where I was just helping him win," Dent said. "I was giving away points on my serve, missing volleys, hitting double-faults. And I was missing a lot of shots from the baseline at stages. I don't know whether that's just how I played today or me coming back and still being a little bit rusty. But in the beginning of the year, I wasn't doing that."

No. 26 seed Feliciano Lopez became the first Spaniard to reach the Wimbledon quarters since Manuel Orantes in 1972 with a surprisingly easy win over a nervous No. 10 seed Mario Ancic 6-4, 6-4, 6-2.

"I think I have a good game for grass, better than clay, better than any other surface," said Lopez, who was aided by the choking Ancic's 15 doubles faults. "That's what I think, my serve and volley is good for this surface."

Other winners on the day successfully held their seeding in advancing into the quarters in (9) Sebastien Grosjean, outlasting Califo-Russian Dmitry Tursunov in five sets 6-4, 6-7(5), 6-3, 3-6, 6-1; (12) Thomas Johansson winning his fifth straight over Max Mirnyi 6-4, 7-5, 6-4 with laser-like passing shots; (18) David Nalbandian having his way with teen (27) Richard Gasquet 6-4, 7-6(3), 6-0, with the Frenchman/boy completely running out of gas in the third-set bagel; and claycourter (21) Fernando Gonzalez out-pounding (31) Mikhail Youzhny from the baseline 7-6(3), 7-6(5), 6-3.

"Yeah, maybe the court is little bit slower than 20 years ago," said Gonzalez on his success this year. "But the tour makes you play everywhere because you have to play some tournaments in indoors, you have to play some tournaments on clay, on hardcourt. You have to play everywhere. For me, this was the first time that I did a good preparation, I mean a real preparation. I played Queen's, I played exhibition tournament last week. And every (other) time that I come to Wimbledon, I come (only) three days before."

Nalbandian was thankful for an easy match after his previous five-setter.

"I think I played pretty good all the time," said Nalbandian, experiencing an easier time than his 0-2 sets comeback against Andy Murray. "In the end of the second I played very good in the tiebreak, and then he falls down a little bit in the beginning of the third. So this makes me more confidence. I think he believe that he didn't have any chance left."

Tuesday is a day of doubles-only on the men's side at the All-England Club in (3) Knowles/Llodra vs. Huss/Moodie, Czechs (11) Suk/Vizner vs. unseeded Germans Schuettler/Waske, (2) Bryan/Bryan vs. unseeded Slovaks Hrbaty/Mertinek, (5)Paes/Zimonjic vs. Beck/Levinsky, and (1) Bjorkman/Mirnyi vs. (13) Knowle/Melzer.