REUTERS — Roger Federer produced sheer masterclass against his Swiss compatriot Stan Wawrinka on Saturday in what was a tightly-contested quarterfinal at the Cincinnati Masters to reach the semifinal.
Federer, who has won a record seven titles at Cincinnati, improved his head-to-head record over Wawrinka to 21-3 after wearing him down 6-7(2) 7-6(6) 6-2 with his brilliant shot-making skills.
The match started with a low-key atmosphere after Wawrinka took the first set with a dominating performance in the tiebreak. However, the crowd was in for a treat and the atmosphere turned into a cracking one when Federer took the second set after fighting it out in the tiebreak.
Such was a tenacity of both men that the first service break of the match came in the third and deciding set. Play was halted two points into the third set due to thunderstorm but the rain spared Cincinnati for once and play resumed shortly after.
Roger that! ???@rogerfederer battles back to defeat Stan Wawrinka 6-7(2) 7-6(6) 6-2 for his 13th consecutive victory at #CincyTennis pic.twitter.com/j2U6ahvBN2
— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) August 18, 2018
Even though Federer looked unhappy with the halt having finally found rhythm, as the play resumed, Federer turned up with a completely different class and stamped his authority over Wawrinka.
“I just tried to remember [for] the core of the match, focus on your serve and try to do what I talked [about] with the coach beforehand on the return games, but it was just never really connecting at the right times my way,” Federer said.
“So I just had to hang tough, not get frustrated, and hope that I was not going to throw in a horrible service game or that he was going to connect perfectly. It was a close match today, so I’m just relieved that I got through it somehow.”
While Federer narrowly avoided an early exit, another high seed was sent packing earlier in the day as number four Juan Martin del Potro fell to diminutive Belgian David Goffin 7-6(5), 7-6(4).
Goffin closed out a tight match with a backhand winner down the baseline.
His reward is a Saturday evening semifinal against Federer, while the other last four clash will match former world No. 1 Novak Djokovic of Serbia against Croatia’s Marin Cilic.
It was a busy day for 10th seeded Djokovic, who came from behind to oust defending champion Grigor Dimitrov of Bulgaria 2-6, 6-3, 6-4 in the conclusion of a third round match carried over from Thursday.
Only a couple of hours later, Djokovic stopped Milos Raonic 7-5, 4-6, 6-3, improving his career record to a perfect 9-0 against the Canadian.
ROARing into the semifinals…@DjokerNole is back in the #CincyTennis SFs for the *SIXTH* time with 7-5 4-6 6-3 win over Raonic.
Former champ Cilic stands in the way of his return to the title match. pic.twitter.com/nxHImd65PE
— Western & Southern Open (@CincyTennis) August 17, 2018
“I’m very pleased with my fighting spirit and staying mentally tough to overcome deficits in both matches,” Djokovic said.
“Obviously the match against Dimitrov yesterday didn’t start so well for me. He started tremendously well. We were not the only ones (dealing with interruptions), but it just makes it harder, because you’re warming up, you’re cooling down.
“We went home around 10.30, came back this morning again to play him, and then (had a) couple hours of rest.
“And to go back on the court again against Raonic, who was serving 140-plus miles (per hour) from the first game, that got me going, for sure, from the beginning.”
Former champion Cilic made his way to the semi-finals with a 7-6(5), 3-6, 6-4 third-round win over Russia’s Karen Khachanov before toppling Spaniard Pablo Carreno Busta 7-6(7), 6-4.
Earlier Friday, world number two Federer, bidding for his eighth Cincinnati title, outlasted Leonardo Mayer of Argentina 6-1, 7-6(6) in the third round.
Playing in his first tournament since Wimbledon, Federer lost just four first-serve points and did not face a break point in the match.
Mayer had a chance to force a third set, but Federer held on to win his third consecutive meeting with the Argentine as players double up in matches in the rain-delayed tournament.
Wawrinka beat Marton Fucsovics of Hungary 6-4 6-3 in their third-round match.
Del Potro had overcome Australian Nick Kyrgios 7-6(4), 6-7(6), 6-2 in the third round.
Goffin had not faced a break point in defeating sixth seed Kevin Anderson of South Africa 6-2, 6-4 in 76 minutes.
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