Roger Federer, Andy Murray, Petra Kvitova advance as heat claims 12 at US Open
3 Sep 2015 2:46 AM GMT
It was the 10th retirement in the men’s event in the first round; there have also been two pullouts in the women’s draw
Germany's Sabine Lisicki serves to Aliaksandra Sasnovich of Belarus during their first round match at the US Open at Flushing Meadows in New York on Tuesday. Lisicki won 6-1, 6-4. (Photo: AP)
New York: Five-time champion Roger Federer and 2012 winner Andy Murray reached the US Open second round Tuesday as the crushing heat took the number of first-round retirements to a record 10.
Second-seeded Federer had little trouble in seeing off Argentina’s world World No.34 Leonardo Mayer 6-1, 6-2, 6-2 in just 77 minutes. The 34-year-old Swiss, bidding to become the oldest champion in New York in 45 years, fired 12 aces, 29 winners and broke serve six times.
“I feel good now. I actually wasn’t so confident yesterday. I just felt like maybe it could be one of those matches I just couldn’t see coming,” said Federer. The 17-time Grand Slam champion goes on to face Belgium’s Steve Darcis, who was handed a place in the next stage when Cypriot veteran Marcos Baghdatis retired injured with a groin strain.
It was the 10th retirement in the men’s event in the first round; there have also been two pullouts in the women’s draw. Third seed Murray downed the sport’s latest bogeyman, Nick Kyrgios, 7-5, 6-3, 4-6, 6-1 for his fourth win in four meetings against the Australian and third in three Grand Slam matchups this year.
The British star, who has made at least the quarter-finals in New York every year since 2010, goes on to tackle France’s Adrian Mannarino. After six men retired on Monday, Kokkinakis, Baghdatis, Ernests Gulbis and Kazakhstan’s Aleksandr Nedovyesov joined the walking wounded on Tuesday.
Stan Wawrinka, the fifth seed and a semifinalist in 2013, made the next round with a 7-5, 6-4, 7-6 (8/6) win over Spain’s Albert Ramos-Vinoles. In the women’s section, Aussie Samantha Stosur, whose 2011 US Open final win over Serena Williams was the last time the US world number one lost at Flushing Meadows, beat Timea Babos of Hungary 6-3, 6-4. Petra Kvitova, the fifth seed, needed just 59 minutes to beat German qualifier Laura Siegemund 6-1, 6-1.
( Source : AFP )
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