Federer Pushed to Five Sets at Australian Open
Wow. It’s amazing what happens in the tennis world over night, especially during the Australian Open.
Perhaps the biggest news is that Roger Federer got pushed to five sets. It would have been monumental had Federer lost, but we won’t go there. It took the Big Man over four hours to finally push Janko Tipsarevic (a Serbian…where did all these Serbian tennis powers come from? I mean, obviously Serbia, but you know what I mean.) out of the Australian Open with a 6-7, 7-6, 5-7, 6-1, 10-8 victory.
The big question really is: will the vigorous five-set exertion play a role in Federer’s push towards the title?
Federer says no. “Just being there in a five-setter is good for me, because I’m hardly ever there. It’s good for my mindset for the next one.”
Anyway, Federer is still alive in the tournament which really doesn’t surprise anyone. When the guy needs to win, he usually finds a way to do it.
How about James Blake? I watched the beginning of that match and was positive Blake was toast. A complete goner. Somehow he pulled his way out of it, put together an impressive third set (hello, 6-0), won the final two sets in the five-set match and got the W. Go, Blake, go.
I was going to talk about Lleyton Hewitt, but he’s dead to me now. It’s going on four in Melbourne and Hewitt is still battling it out with Marcos Baghdatis. They are in the fifth set, but it never should have gotten that far. Hewitt blew a 5-1 lead in the fourth. I don’t think “blew it” is a strong enough term actually.
But Hewitt is a goner. He’s washed up, Baghdatis has the momentum and is better in five-setters. And I’ll eat my words if Hewitt pulls it out, but I really don’t think he’s going to and he’s still going to be dead to me. You don’t let a 5-1 lead vanish and still retain my friendship. Uh-huh, no way.
Tags: Australian Open, James Blake, Lleyton-Hewitt, Marcos Baghdatis, Roger Federer, tennisRelated Stories
POSTED IN: Australian Open, James Blake, Marcos Baghdatis, Roger Federer
2 opinions for Federer Pushed to Five Sets at Australian Open
Geoff Young
Jan 19, 2008 at 3:45 pm
I was out late last night and when I got home, the fifth set was just starting so I watched the whole thing. It was worth a little sleep deprivation. That’s some of the best tennis I’ve ever seen. Federer’s serve was unreal, and kudos to Tipsarevic for refusing to yield until the very end.
Erica
Jan 20, 2008 at 8:47 pm
Watching Federer in a five-setter is always worth a little sleep deprivation. I agree - kudos to Tipsarevic for going the distance - it should be a great second week of tennis!
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