Malta Independent

Federer, Medvedev reach 3rd round in Shanghai; Murray out

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Roger Federer didn't face a break point as he won his opening match at the Shanghai Masters yesterday, beating Albert Ramos-Vinolas 6-2, 7-6 (5).

The second-seeded Federer, who is bidding to win a third Shanghai Masters title, dominated in the first set, but was tested in the second.

Federer struggled in the tiebreaker, falling behind 1-4, but eventually managed to pull even. He won his lone match point when he executed a forehand crosscourt volley.

"I focused and had good energy, because sometimes, you know, when you travel around the globe, you're missing a bit of energy," Federer said. "Those first few games or matches can be sometimes a bit tricky.

The last time the two faced each other was in the 2015 Shanghai Masters, where the Spaniard shocked Federer by taking the three-set encounter, and Federer admitted he had that secondroun­d match on his mind on Tuesday.

"All the time," said Federer, when asked if he thought of their previous outing. "The truth, yeah, I was thinking about it. Watched highlights. Remember how it felt. I had my chances. I won many more points that time than I lost, so I should have actually won that match."

Andy Murray served for his second-round match against 10th seed Fabio Fognini twice in the third set - in the 10th and 12th games - but ended up losing 7-6 (4), 2-6, 7-6 (2) in a match which lasted more than three hours.

"I'm very disappoint­ed right now," Murray said. "There is a lot of things that I need to get better at, and I can do much better. I will go away and I'll work on those things.

Similarly to Federer, third seed Daniil Medvedev of Russia never offered his opponent, British qualifier Cameron Norrie, a break point opportunit­y in securing a 63, 6-1 second-round win in 54-minutes.

"I'm really happy with my performanc­e, really happy with the score and am really looking forward to the next round," Medvedev said.

Medvedev has reached the final of the last five tournament­s he's played, including his first Grand Slam final showing, which came at the U.S. Open.

Unseeded Andrey Rublev of Russia upset Borna Coric 6-4, 7-6 (4) in the first round.

The 12th-seeded Coric was runner-up in Shanghai last year, losing to Novak Djokovic in straight sets in the final.

Two Americans — 16th-seeded John Isner and Reilly Opelka — are through to the second round.

Isner ousted Alex De Minaur of Australia 7-6 (1), 6-4, and Opelka defeated Dusan Lajovic of Serbia 6-3, 6-4.

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