Federer eases past Davydenko, Tomic awaits in the third round

Roger Federer was far from his resplendent best on Thursday – probably the effects of jumping headlong into a Grand Slam tournament without adequate preparation. Fortunately for the Swiss, he did not need to be, considering that the former world No. 3 he was facing did not have the legs that once motored him around the court with alarming efficiency. In the 20th match between Federer and Nikolay Davydenko, the Swiss found the net or flew off the court more often than he would have liked but still managed to pull off a straight set 6-3 6-4 6-4 victory over the Russian inside two hours.

Federer and Davydenko are victims of familiarity, having played each other 20 times now besides having been sparring partners for a while in the past. It was an even start with both players belting the ball with a vengeance that betrayed the warmth in their amiable relationship. But Federer had only lost twice to the Russian and the Swiss began to pull away with the help of a fine flick of his wrist to punch holes into his opponent with devastating regularity. Federer was using the suppleness in his wrist to improvise the placement and angle to send the ball zipping beyond the reach of his opponent. And when it does come off, there are not many beautiful things in the game than a Federer forehand, barring of course the sublime backhand up the line with a slightly bent knee when the man across the net doesn’t answer to the name Rafael Nadal.

The last time they met in Melbourne in the quarter-finals of 2010, Davydenko was world No.3, coming off a hot streak, having beaten Federer at the Tour Finals before repeating the feat in Doha. The Russian was even up by a set and a break before melting away into the shadows. On those days, his feet would motor tirelessly and the forehand might not have been beautiful but was no less potent than that of Federer. Davydenko has since failed to make it past the third round of a major and is currently fighting just to stay in the top 50.

Federer enjoyed a couple of break points in the fourth game, but let both opportunities go to waste, allowing the Russian to stay even. It was a finely crafted backhand up the line that brought up the third break point of the match in the sixth game, and though Federer, as is his wont these days, failed to capitalise that or the next, Davydenko offered a third and this time the Swiss grasped it to take a 4-2 lead. The Swiss enjoyed a couple of set points too in the eighth game, but let them pass too before eventually clinching the set on his serve in the next game. A stylish forehand volley helped Federer bag the first set with a flourish, but the extravagance with which he let six of the seven opportunities go past him is an area that might yet haunt the maestro deeper inside the tournament.

Federer made inroads early in the second set, when he broke serve with a typically belligerent forehand cross court winner whipped from the middle of the court. Just as in the first set, Federer sustained the advantage – which wasn’t that hard considering nearly 70% of his first deliveries were getting into play. In the ninth game, Federer enjoyed a couple of set points too on the Davydenko serve but squandered them again – a recurring theme in the match and a problem that Federer needs to address before meeting the big guns later in the fortnight, if he were to get there, as the cocky Bernard Tomic might like to say. And he is all set to have a say in whether the maestro stays on in Melbourne, when the two meet in the most eagerly awaited third round encounter.

Back to the match on hand, Federer held serve with ease to take a two set lead. Meanwhile, the Russian was fading faster than a Ferrari on an Autobahn straight with no car in sight. Only poor Davydenko was driving backwards. Federer took matters into firm control by breaking the dispirited Russian in the very first game of the third set, that too at love. Though the Swiss had time to let slip yet another break point in the fifth game, it barely mattered. Roger sealed victory, his 249th in Grand Slam play, with an ace wide off his lunging opponent to keep his date with a 20-year old Aussie that some believe has both the chutzpah and the skill to pull off a sensational upset.

Federer though isn’t the kind to be quickly ruffled – though he will certainly get back to his joint wondering about the fact that he had a worrisome 42 unforced errors to just 35 winners, but more importantly had turned down 10 of the 13 invitations he had been sent to break serve. Speaking about the challenge that lay ahead on Saturday, this what Federer offered:

“It’s nice to see Bernard playing better again. He had a rough end to the season last year, but he’s had a wonderful start this year and I hope he can keep it up and crack the big rankings,” before speaking for himself. “It’s going to be an exciting match. I have got to play tough. I don’t mind the physical aspects and maybe that is an advantage for me. I will always play aggressively but we will try to move each other around a bit so it will need a bit more finesse.”

It is only very fitting too that Federer has a worthy rival to try and bring about his 250th match victory in a Grand Slam – a staggering record considering that he needed just 56 of these major tournaments to almost reach there. He is only a step away from the landmark, but there is an enraged bull in his way and Federer will need all the concentration he can muster to keep his head amidst the outburst of enthusiasm surrounding the fuming prince and his promised Eden.