Rome: Jeremy Chardy caught new father Roger Federer on the hop at a wind-blown ATP-WTA Rome Masters on Wednesday, winning their second round tie 1-6, 6-3, 7-6 (8-6). The upset loss, in just over two hours, came barely a week after the 32-year-old Federer became father to his second set of twins.
The fourth-seeded Swiss, who has never won the Rome title, decided to come and have a go on the clay of the Foro Italico anyway after consulting with wife Mirka and his team. With him in Rome was part-time coaching consultant Stefan Edberg. Conditions were brutal for a match played amid great bursts of red clay blowing regularly through the air. Federer swept the opening set but began to fade in the second as a charged-up Chardy made his move.
In other play, Andy Murray took revenge for a loss a year ago as he defeated Marcel Granollers to open with a 6-2, 7-5 victory into the third round. The Spaniard had benefitted in 2013 when the Scot had to quit their second-round contest with the back pains which eventually drove him to surgery last autumn.
The match was also played in swirling dustbowl conditions which bothered both players throughout. The seventh-seeded Murray will next face resurgent Austrian Jurgen Melzer, who beat Marin Cilic 6-2, 6-7 (5-7), 6-3 as a return from injury starts to pay off with results. Murray spent just under 90 minutes in holding off Granollers.
The Scot advanced on a second match point when his opponent put a forehand long. Murray, playing Rome for the ninth time, is trying to kick-start his delayed clay season which began only last week with a win and a loss in Madrid. In women’s, Agnieszka Radwanska defeated Paola Ormaechea 6-3, 6-2 while Samantha Stosur defeated Elena Vesnina 6-2, 6-3.
