Federer rallies for five-set victory
Roger Federer, right, managed to pull out his second five-set victory in a row at the U.S. Open on Thursday afternoon, coming back to edge 101st-ranked Mikhail Youzhny of Russia 6-1, 6-7 (3), 4-6, 6-4, 6-2. Federer had entered the match 16-0 against Youzhny and 16-0 in second-round matches at Flushing Meadows.
NEW YORK — Given that Roger Federer entered Thursday with a 16-0 career record against his opponent, Mikhail Youzhny, and a 16-0 mark in the U.S. Open's second round, one might have thought that their meeting at that stage in Flushing Meadows would have been no contest.
Think again. Federer set aside an uncharacteristic 68 unforced errors and what appeared to be a bad back, managing to pull out his second five-set victory in a row at the U.S. Open by coming back to edge Youzhny 6-1, 6-7 (3), 4-6, 6-4, 6-2. It is the first time in his long career that the 36-year-old Federer has played five-setters in both the first and second rounds at a Grand Slam tournament.
“These five-set battles are actually quite a lot of fun,” Federer said in his oncourt interview in Arthur Ashe Stadium, “and I feel quite warmed up by now.”
The No. 3-seeded Federer won five consecutive U.S. Open championships from 2004-08 and also has been the runner-up twice, including two years ago. But he missed last year's tournament while taking off the second half of the season to let his back and surgically repaired left knee fully heal.
That time off paid obvious dividends: He is 37-3 with five titles in 2017, including his 18th Grand Slam title at the Australian Open in January, then 19th at Wimbledon in July. Federer did not lose any of the sets he played in seven matches at the All England Club. Things have been rather different so far in New York.
Youzhny is a former top-10 player who reached the U.S. Open semifinals in 2006 and 2010 but he is now ranked 101st. His level of play dipped considerably over the last two sets Thursday as he appeared to be restricted by a leg cramp.
“I was feeling [badly] there for Mikhail,” Federer said.
Federer was not quite himself for much of the match, either. He appeared slowed by the back that he tweaked earlier in August and his strokes were not at their usual level of crispness. He also needed five sets to win in the first round Monday night against 19-year-old American Frances Tiafoe.
Later on Thursday, past U.S. Open champion Svetlana Kuznetsova was upset in the second round by 116th-ranked Kurumi Nara of Japan 6-3, 3-6, 6-3 for Nara's first victory in nine career matches against top-10 opponents. It also allowed her to get to the third round at the Open for the first time since 2013, equaling her best showing at a Grand Slam event. The No. 8-seeded Kuznetsova's exit means five of the top eight women in the field are out before the third round.