Roger Federer passed his first endurance test in Paris thanks to his strong fighting performance. After a good start came down vs. Dominic Kupffer (ATP 59) Meanwhile in dire straits. After winning the tiebreak, Kupffer took a 4-2 lead in the third set and left a better physical impression. However, Federer found a second breath and made his way back. After constant ups and downs, the Swiss won after 3:35 hours with 7:6 (7:5), 6:7 (3:7), 7:6 (7:4), 7:5.
Used in the round of 16 I’m not sure
Now we must see how well he will recover by the second round on Monday against Italian Matteo Berrettini (ATP 9). Shortly after the match, Federer could not say for sure whether he would compete or not. “I have to look into it with my team to see if the stakes might be too great.”
He could have made it a little easier against Kupffer. After winning the first set, Federer twice took a fractured lead in the second round before the match took him away for a while. The Black Forest player, who has played hard at times and who first attracted attention two years ago when he qualified for the last 16 at the US Open, has not been able to fully maintain his form. The 27-year-old left-handed backhander, named Pitbull when he was in college in America, also came back in the fourth set after breaking a disability. But in the end, Federer played his biggest experience and won after breaking 6:5.
For the first time, one of the night sessions held this year in Paris ended after midnight, due to the nightly curfew in France in front of empty seats. Federer was very satisfied after this match “many first performances”. He played for the first time against Kupffer, for the first time in Paris in a night session and for the first time without spectators. “It was a crazy match with a lot of ups and downs,” he said in an interview with The Course. “I started well, I felt good, but then maybe I gave up on the match a little bit unnecessarily.”
Differences like night and day
Federer also admitted that after adjusting the sentence, he no longer believed in a happy ending. “I couldn’t figure out how much energy I still had in the tank and also had to eat a few more.” He could certainly have played better, but “it was a huge match to see what else I can bring.” However, he should not be unhappy if he can play against Brittney again on Monday. “The conditions were completely different, and it was much slower.” Not ideal for the player who likes to quickly find the winning hit and wants to take advantage of many free points with the submission. But the lack of fans had one advantage, the 40-year-old from Basel said with a smile: “In the end I would have been more nervous.”
By the way, since 2003 and the defeat to Gustavo Kuerten, he has never lost at Roland Garros before the round of 16 when he competed in Paris.
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