NEW YORK _ Roger Federer insisted his back felt fine on Thursday, no matter how often he seemed out of sync during his 6-1, 6-7(3), 4-6, 6-4, 6-2 victory over 101st-ranked Mikhail Youzhny in the second round of the U.S. Open. Nor did he fret about having played back-to-back five-set matches in a Grand Slam tournament for the first time in an illustrious career highlighted by 19 Grand Slam titles.
Federer said his inability to practice all-out when his back was sore led him to be inconsistent and rattled his rhythm. The 36-year-old Switzerland native also brushed off suggestions he's risking fatigue later by dragging out these early matches.
"This match wasn't about the back, which is good. This is more just a grind," the No. 3 seed said, and then added a positive spin to it. "I think because you're on a high, you're thrilled that you got through, so you don't look at the negative. Or I don't. Yes, I might feel more tired than I normally would going into a third round, but that's OK."
His next opponent will be left-hander Feliciano Lopez of Spain, 35. Federer has a 12-0 career edge over Lopez _ and none of those matches went five sets. "I'm pretty confident that I'm only going to get better from here," Federer said.
