Roger Federer took another successful step in his highly-celebrated comeback on Wednesday at the Australian Open. The Swiss star prevailed past 20-year-old American Noah Rubin 7-5, 6-3, 7-6(3) to reach the third round for the 18th consecutive year, every time Federer has played at Melbourne Park. “It was a difficult first set [and a] tricky third set, of course,” said Federer. “I had to save a couple of set points. I know it could have gone different. I think I was a bit more consistent than in the first match against [Jurgen] Melzer, where I ended up losing that second set after leading. I think I had a little bit better concentration. I didn't know much about Noah Rubin going...
Stan Wawrinka stayed perfect on his serve all match long against Steve Johnson to march into the third round of the Australian Open on Wednesday. Wawrinka hit 11 aces and erased all five break points faced to beat the American 6-3, 6-4, 6-4 in one hour and 51 minutes. Wawrinka, with his potent one-hander, sought to go backhand to backhand often against Johnson, who almost exclusively slices his two-handed backhand in hopes a forehand in the near future. The Swiss was successful, blasting 46 winners to Johnson's 29. “I'm not relieved, but happy with the match of today - happy with my level, my focus,” admitted Wawrinka. “I was moving well, feeling good. It was a little bit windy, but...
If given the chance for a dream selfie, some ATP World Tour pros might opt for pictures with other famous athletes, such as David Beckham or Kobe Bryant. But not Kei Nishikori. Who would Nishikori want to take a selfie with? “Mickey,” he said on Wednesday after his second-round win against Jeremy Chardy at the Australian Open. [ALSO LIKE] “Who is that?” the reporter asked. Nishikori, apparently befuddled by the question, simply repeated his one-word answer. “Mickey,” he said. The reporter still did not understand, though. “What's Mickey famous for?” the reporter asked. “Disney World,” Nishikori said to laughs. To be fair, the Japanese star should know Mickey Mouse and other Disney World characters better than most. Nishikori trains at...
Kei Nishikori must have learned his lesson. After playing a five-set opener in the Melbourne heat on Monday, the Japanese avoided such serious tension during his second-round match, dismissing Frenchman Jeremy Chardy 6-3, 6-4, 6-3 in just over two hours on Wednesday at the Australian Open. “It was a good match. Definitely much better than the first match. There were many up and downs in the second set and in the third set, too,” Nishikori said. Nishikori saved six of nine break points faced and made Chardy work all match long on his serve. The fifth-seeded Nishikori converted seven of 18 break points against the 29-year-old Chardy, who was trying to reach the third round in Melbourne for the third...
Rafael Nadal entered Interview Room 1 for his post-match press conference on Tuesday at the Australian Open and looked at his watch. “I was checking how late I am,” he said with a smile. The Spaniard was only about 15 minutes behind, but explained, “In Mallorca, there is a thing, when we are going, we say, ‘I am coming’. [It’s] tough to be 100 per cent on time on an island. But we work [at it] a lot.” Perhaps Nadal was delayed because he was still celebrating his first-round win at the Australian Open, beating Florian Mayer with ease in straight sets in just over two hours. There was little to stress about in the match, in which he won...
