Federer, Kyrgios advance to semis

AFP, MIAMI: Roger Federer dramatically fought his way into the Miami Open semi-finals with a 6-2, 3-6, 7-6 (8/6) victory over Czech 10th seed Tomas Berdych on Thursday.
The 35-year-old Swiss, who has already won the Australian Open and Indian Wells so far this year, extended his win streak over Berdych to seven matches.
There was plenty of tension in the match-deciding tie-breaker, where Federer saved match point and then Berdych lost on a double-fault.
Federer will face Nick Kyrgios in the semi-finals after the Australian came through an entertaining 6-4, 6-7 (9/11), 6-3 victory over 19-year-old German Alexander Zverev.
Federer next will play the winner of Thursday's later quarter-final between two of the ATP's up and coming stars, Australia's Nick Kyrgios and Germany's Alexander Zverev.
Should Federer win Friday, there is a chance he will play Sunday's final against long-standing rival Rafael Nadal, who faces Italy's Fabio Fognini in the other semi-final.
But Thursday could very easily have been the end of the tournament for the 18-time Grand Slam champion, who entered the match having not dropped a set over eight consecutive matches at Indian Wells and Miami.
Berdych was broken in the opening game of the match and then Federer dealt with a break point in the second game. The Swiss was comfortable on his serve and then broke Berdych again at 4-2 to put the opening set beyond doubt.
But then, the Czech dug deep and came out fighting.
Berdych broke to go 5-3 up and took the contest into a third set, where Federer made the most of some unforced errors from his opponent to break at 4-2 but then, uncharacteristically, Federer let some sloppiness creep into his game.
Federer was broken when serving for the match at 5-3 and was unable to convert on match-point at in the next game.
Berdych led 6-4 in the tie-breaker but gave up two points and Federer blasted a superb ace to get in front before the double-fault from the Czech ended the contest.

 

 

Federer, Kyrgios advance to semis

AFP, MIAMI: Roger Federer dramatically fought his way into the Miami Open semi-finals with a 6-2, 3-6, 7-6 (8/6) victory over Czech 10th seed Tomas Berdych on Thursday. The 35-year-old Swiss, who has already won the Australian Open and Indian Wells so far this year, extended his win streak over Berdych to seven matches. There was plenty of tension in the match-deciding tie-breaker, where Federer saved match point and then Berdych lost on a double-fault. Federer will face Nick Kyrgios in the semi-finals after the Australian came through an entertaining 6-4, 6-7 (9/11), 6-3 victory over 19-year-old German Alexander Zverev. Federer next will play the winner of Thursdays later quarter-final between two of the ATPs up and coming stars, Australias Nick Kyrgios and Germanys Alexander Zverev. Should Federer win Friday, there is a chance he will play Sundays final against long-standing rival Rafael Nadal, who faces Italys Fabio Fognini in the other semi-final. But Thursday could very easily have been the end of the tournament for the 18-time Grand Slam champion, who entered the match having not dropped a set over eight consecutive matches at Indian Wells and Miami. Berdych was broken in the opening game of the match and then Federer dealt with a break point in the second game. The Swiss was comfortable on his serve and then broke Berdych again at 4-2 to put the opening set beyond doubt. But then, the Czech dug deep and came out fighting. Berdych broke to go 5-3 up and took the contest into a third set, where Federer made the most of some unforced errors from his opponent to break at 4-2 but then, uncharacteristically, Federer let some sloppiness creep into his game. Federer was broken when serving for the match at 5-3 and was unable to convert on match-point at in the next game. Berdych led 6-4 in the tie-breaker but gave up two points and Federer blasted a superb ace to get in front before the double-fault from the Czech ended the contest.