Roger Federer grinds out victory at U.S. Open
U.S. OPEN
He advances by defeating Igor Andreev.
NEW YORK -- A long, amazing slog of a match in the early evening today at Arthur Ashe Stadium came decorated with an unusual and telling soundtrack.
Through three hours, 32 minutes of fourth-round U.S. Open wrestling, it featured the repeated, atypical, guttural yells of Roger Federer as he grinded through his own newfound imperfections and revealed his champion's makeup.
And when finally he had wriggled from his 6-7 (5), 7-6 (5), 6-3, 3-6, 6-3 scrap with the formidable No. 23-ranked Igor Andreev of Russia, Federer had remained viable for a fifth straight U.S. Open title and thrilled the New York fans who have come to value him.
In finding enough escape hatches from thickets and from 60 unforced errors to win his 31st consecutive U.S. Open match, Federer resembled a bit of a mini-Jimmy Connors. He roared. He screamed. He wished balls out. He drew shrieks and cheers from a crowd that had just witnessed an earlier marathon, No. 3 Novak Djokovic withstanding No. 15 Tommy Robredo by 4-6, 6-2, 6-3, 5-7, 6-3.
Eventually it got so involved that he -- Federer -- even sort of impersonated a jackhammer. That came just after he reached a drop shot and flicked a sweet lob into Andreev's backhand corner, then watched Andreev's pass attempt sail wide.
As Federer pumped both fists slightly as his body shook in celebration, he appropriately stood next to the net, where he spent much of the match in a departure from the baseline tactics he mined while he spent 239 weeks at No. 1 until August. Now ranked No. 2 to Rafael Nadal after losing both the French Open and Wimbledon finals, and perhaps weary after a rigorous schedule, Federer routinely shortened points against Andreev by rushing the net 84 times, winning 58 of the points in a reminder that he served-and-volleyed often early in his career.
During a particularly scary point with Federer leading 6-5 in the second-set tiebreaker, he suddenly charged forward on the 12th shot of the rally, knocking a forehand volley that Andreev returned wide to close the set.
He also proved in dangerous moments to be just a jot better than Andreev, the 25-year-old who has risen to No. 23 this year partly through playing a whopping 26 events. Federer faced seven break points in the second set and shooed them all. He fought through a bear of a seventh game of the fifth set, facing four break points and solving them usually with a reliable first serve.
When Federer served-and-volleyed twice in his last service game, holding at love, and Andreev's dig-out forehand curled high, across the court and long, Federer looked energized, while Andreev, leaving the court, took a rather elaborate bow.
