Federer struggles to beat Berdych in Miami
Roger Federer stared down defeat and saved two match points before knocking Tomas Berdych out of the Miami Open on Thursday with a 6-2 3-6 7-6(6) victory in their thrilling quarter-final.
Federer will next face Nick Kyrgios on Friday after the 12th seeded Australian edged German teenager Alexander Zverev 6-4 6-7(9) 6-3 in an evening quarter-final, finally clinching victory on his sixth match point.
Swiss magician Federer had to call upon all his resources of skill, poise and experience to edge the Czech in a third set tiebreak in front of a frenzied crowd at Crandon Park.
Berdych served for the match at 6-4 in the tiebreak but Federer reeled off four points in a row, including two unplayable serves, and secured the win when the 10th seed crumbled with an awful second serve.
Federer conceded he had rode his luck at times to advance.
“I’ve had some tough losses here where I should have won. They stay with you so I’m happy today to have come through somehow,” he said courtside. “I definitely got very lucky at the end but I think I showed great heart today and I fought. Tomas really stepped it up and it was a great match at the end but one guy had to win.”
Australian Open champion Federer, who also won at Indian Wells two weeks ago, is playing some of the best tennis of his career and appears completely recovered from a knee injury that kept him out of the second half of last year.
KYRGIOUS GETS PAST ZVEREV
Tempers flared between Nick Kyrgios and Alexander Zverev late in their quarterfinal clash when a botched line call and contentious decision by the chair umpire to allow a challenge on the point caused both players to react angrily. The pivotal moment of the Australian’s 6-4 6-7(9) 6-3 triumph came on the first point of the sixth game in the deciding set, when a lob from Germany’s Zverev sailed long.
The linesman mistakenly called the ball in and Kyrgios, despite believing it was out, decided to try a low percentage ‘tweener’ shot between his legs before challenging.
Chair umpire Fergus Murphy allowed the challenge, a decision that former player Brad Gilbert called “wrong” during television coverage, and replays showed the ball was indeed out.
The point was awarded to Kyrgios, which left Zverev seething, the German arguing that the 12th seed should not have been allowed to challenge the call after hitting the ball. Kyrgios blasted the linesman for missing the initial call.
KONTA DOWNS VENUS TO REACH FINAL
Britain’s Johanna Konta beat Venus Williams 6-4, 7-5 in a gruelling battle on Thursday to reach the WTA Miami Open final, where she will face Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark.
The Australian-born 25-yearold broke Williams in the first game and played aggressively throughout the opening set.
Williams fought back strongly in the second set, breaking to go up 3-1. But Konta broke back immediately and again for a 5-4 lead that allowed her to serve for the match.
The American took advantage of some nervy play from the 10thseed to break back, but Williams was unable to hold serve and that gave Konta a second chance to wrap up the contest, which she did after more than two hours.
Konta said she expects a big challenge ahead in order to capture her second title of the year after a Sydney crown.
Wozniacki booked her place in the final after rallying to defeat Czech Karolina Pliskova 5-7, 6-1, 6-1. Pliskova, who won titles this year at Doha and Brisbane, also lost in semis at Indian Wells.
FOWLER MASTERS ‘MUD BALLS’ ON WAY TO LEAD
Rickie Fowler, with one eye on Augusta, turned the other eye to the task at hand, cop ing with a number of “mud balls” to surge into the first round lead at the Shell Houston Open in Texas on Thursday.
The American ended his day in style, very nearly grabbing a hole-in-one at the 230-yard par three ninth, his ball rolling past the edge of the cup before settling five feet away, setting up a birdie