Federer blasts his way into final four of French
TENNIS
After losing the first set, Roger Federer dominates Fernando Gonzalez.
PARIS -- Blasted in a first set that stirred some curiosity on the Roland Garros grounds today, Roger Federer showed his peerless capacity to redirect tennis momentum and hurried into the final four of the 2008 French Open.
Once Federer changed course with more pointed attacks, he cruised through Fernando Gonzalez, 2-6, 6-2, 6-3, 6-4, flustering Gonzalez to such degree that the Chilean annihilated his racket after losing the first game of the third set against Federer.
Fortunately, he did so at the start of a changeover for convenience, so he could simply deposit the racket in a courtside trash can while Federer rested.
Gonzalez, who lost to Federer in the 2007 Australian Open final and held down the world's No. 7 spot by year's end, used the same forehand that ousted the last American, Robby Ginepri, and tore through Federer in the first set, breaking serve twice. It marked the second set Federer has lost in this French Open and, given Gonzalez's well-known capabilities, mildly raised the question of whether Federer might lose before the semifinals for the first time in fully four years, dating back to a third-round, 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 loss to three-time champion Gustavo Kuerten in the 2004 French Open.
Just as in the second round against Albert Montanes of Spain, Federer replied by destroying the opponent in three rapid sets, and this time it gave him at least a semifinal berth for the 16th straight Grand Slam tournament.
By the middle of the second set, Federer already had held two love-40s against Gonzalez on Gonzalez's serve, losing one but converting another to grab control of the set. From there, he treated the appreciative audience to his usual array of tennis mastery, including a backhand drop shot that wowed the masses and helped clinch the set, and a forehand on the fly that ended the match.
