Federer Sets Kyrgios Clash at US Open – In the middle of a hot and humid afternoon in New York, Roger Federer navigated through the muggy weather conditions, a bit of subpar serving, and an emotionally volatile opponent in Benoit Paire. The Swiss maestro defeated the Frenchman 7-5 6-4 6-4 in 1 hour 57 minutes on Arthur Ashe stadium. After getting off to a quick start and nearly taking a 5-3 lead, Paire broke serve to keep the opening set on even terms. The 5-time US Open champion saved four of six break points faced, and converted five of his own nine break point opportunities to maintain a comfortable lead throughout the match.
Behind 5 aces came 5 double faults, as Federer’s serve dipped in the third set. He made 58% of first serves, winning 75% of points on his first serve and 63% of points on his second serve. With 27 winners and 39 unforced errors, it wasn’t a clean performance, except at net, where the 37-year-old Swiss won 27 of 35 points.
“I think it was a bit sort of up and down,” said Federer. “I think it’s always tricky against Benoit, because there’s a lot of tactics going on. Never quite the same point. Sometimes he plays very deep in the court, then he plays up in the court. That’s maybe why you draw errors out of each other rather than winners at the end. The match maybe doesn’t look at good. Plus he covers the court very well. Sometimes you have a tendency to overplay, as well. But overall I’m happy. I think it was not a bad performance by any means by me. I can be pleased, so it’s all good.”
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Federer advances to the third round of the US Open, where he will face Nick Kyrgios on Saturday. The two have faced off three times on the ATP World Tour (Federer leads head-to-head 2-1). Each of their matches has gone to three sets, with eight of the nine sets played being tiebreaks. The Swiss veteran and 23-year-old Australian also faced off in the final match of the inaugural Laver Cup, where Federer prevailed 11-9 in a super-tiebreak to decide the outcome. Their upcoming meeting is the first in a grand slam.
Federer Sets Kyrgios Clash at US Open
Source: ATP World Tour