Federer blows past Del Potro into fourth round of Miami
In-form Roger Federer powered his way into the fourth round of the Miami Open with a 6-3 6-4 win over Argentina’s Juan Martin del Potro on Monday.
Del Potro always enjoys plenty of crowd support in Miami, which has a large Argentine community and it was the same story again with footballstyle chants of support ringing out for the 28-year-old at the Crandon Park centre court.
It was the pair’s first meeting since 2013 and having won 15 of the previous 21 encounters, Federer was favourite, but the crowd factor gave the thirdround match an added edge.
“Shortly before I walked out to the court you could sense the atmosphere. That’s when I told myself, ‘just be prepared for something different’, you know. It was different,” Federer said.
He was forced to save four break points in the first set but he got ahead with a thundering forehand to take a 5-3 lead and served out for the set. The Argentine had a chance to turn things around when he had a break point when down 4-3 in the second set, but Federer held firm and wrapped up the match in one hour and 22 minutes.
“I felt like I was in control and I was able to generate more chances than he did,” Federer said. “I felt like he got his chances a little bit out of nowhere, maybe because I dropped my level ever so slightly and gave him few easy points and that’s how he sort of got more chances on my serve. I feel like I earned it more. I was more the aggressor. It was more on my racquet and I like it that way,” said the Swiss, who won his 18th Grand Slam title at the Australian Open in January.
Federer, whose successful return from a six-month injury layoff has also included a win at Indian Wells in March, will face 14th seeded Spaniard Roberto Bautista Agut in the next round.
In the women’s section, world No 1 Angelique Kerber despatched Japanese qualifier Risa Ozaki 6-2 6-2 to set up a quarterfinal clash with Venus Williams. Seven-time Grand Slam champion Williams fought past Russian seventh-seed Svetlana Kuznetsova 6-3 7-6 (7/4) to reach the last eight.
Fourth-seed Dominika Cibulkova of Slovakia crashed out to the Czech Republic’s Lucie Safarova and ailing French Open champion Garbine Muguruza also bowed out in the fourth round.
Kerber took charge early, breaking twice to establish a 4-1 lead and she was in firm control from then on. The German said that while her opponent may only have been ranked 87th she had studied Ozaki’s game closely before the contest.
“She came through the qualifications, she beat good players, so I was ready for it,” Kerber said.
“I talked with my team and I knew that she’s moving good and bringing a lot of balls back. I was trying to play my game and be aggressive.”
Williams cruised through the first set before Kuznetsova, a two-time Grand Slam champion and runner-up at Indian Wells last week, fought back to take the second set to a tie-break.
It was a fierce battle for the decisive points, Kuznetsova going 4-1 up, but after two lengthy rallies, Williams emerged victorious.
The victory, sealed with a delicate slice at the net, was Williams’ first against a top 10 opponent since 2015.
Safarova, ranked 36th in the world, moved into the quarterfinals with a 7-6 (7/5), 6-1 victory over Cibulkova, which was her first triumph against a top 10 opponent since 2015.