Ordinary day at the US Open. But it was not good news for Murray.
Federer – Verdasco 6-3 6-4 6-4
Routine stuff for the Maestro that was too much for Fernando. The Spaniard is a very good player with wonderful strokes, but he struggles too much to keep the intensity of top players. The stats are revealing as Verdasco committed 10 double faults and 35 unforced errors. On the other side Roger was spotless with 7 aces, 1 double fault, 30 winners, 19 unforced errors.
Talking about his overall performance “I had no clue my stats were that good coming in,” said Federer. “I really tried to play offensive against Bjorn Phau in my second match. I did lose more points than I was hoping to. I think that gave me the confidence to move forward today and conditions helped that because it was quicker during the day.”
Talking about Rafa struggles and the possibility that he will be back only in 2013 “It’s obviously not great news but one that was a possibility,” said Federer “I’m not shocked about the news. I’m still hopeful that he’ll be okay for the rest of the year,”
Roger will play either Fish or Simon in the 4th round.
Murray – Lopez 7-6 (5) 7-6 (5) 4-6 7-6 (4)
Andy had a 4 hours battle with “Deliciano” (as per his mother’s definition) in hot and humid weather and that is not good news for him. Andy looked to be in full control of the situation after winning the first 2 sets at the tiebreak in a couple of hours time. Then he lost the third set to battle in the fourth. The Scott was struggling once again to concede 13 break points and to be broken 4 times. Even if he was the winner, he scored less points the Lopez (154-162).
Murray was quite proved by the phisical and mental struggle he had on the court
“I always say you never take matches or any players for granted,” Murray said, “because on any given day, you know, things can change. If you don’t play your best, they play a great match, you know, you can lose. Sometimes you just have to find a way to get through. I did that today. I hope it’s a benefit, if anything,” Murray added. “I need to spend time on the court. I need to go through tough moments, tough situations.”
Raonic – Blake 6-3 6-0 7-6 (3)
Milos is speeding up toward the top 10 ranking. With this easy win he equalled his best performance in a slam (2011 Australian Open when he reached the quarters (he lost to Ferrer). The Canadian was quite pleased by his performance “If I’m serving well, I’m hitting my spots, it’s about making him feel as uncomfortable as possible,” said Raonic. “If I serve well, that’s sort of what sort of happens. It’s a ripple effect.” Well… 29 aces is a lot! The match lasted only 1 hour and 48 minutes and this will help Milos to be fresh for his next match with Murray
The Canadian and the Scott have a strange record as they were meant to play 3 times this year, but Raonic pulled out in the third round in Miami and Murray in the third round in Toronto. On court they played only once in the quarters in Barcelona where Milos won 6-3 7-6 (3).
