Next up for Federer is Sam Groth of Australia, the world No69. He’s another big man – I know, because I almost fell over him in Wimbledon Village the other day, all 6ft 4in of him – with an equally big serve. Still, you’d imagine Federer will be in good shape for that after seeing off Querrey. “He’s a good serve-and-volley player, he’s got an amazing serve that he can really clock,” says Federer of Groth. “So I’m looking forward to another match like today”. I should imagine he is. Especially if he plays like that. For now, though, that’s it. Thanks for reading, thanks for your emails, and – if you’re watching Wimbledon live – enjoy Rafa, who’s next up on Centre Court.
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Of that extraordinary lob through the legs, Federer says: “It was the perfect shot, it just felt like I had the time. But if you don’t win the point then you look a little bit silly. I had to work hard – Sam’s a good player and he had a good run on the grass last week. The first break was crucial, and then I had a good 10 minutes.” Ah, was that all? Sounds easy, this tennis lark, doesn’t it?
Reflecting on his progress so far, a gently glowing Federer says: “I’m very happy with how I’ve played the first two matches.” I’ll bet he is. He then adds, perhaps somewhat surprisingly: “There’s a little bit of relief that I’m actually playing this well at Wimbledon.” Clearly he didn’t feel last year’s effort was up to scratch. After all, he only managed to lose in the final. Imagine the horror!
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It’s the customary routine: a quick wave, and then Federer launches his sweatbands and bandana into the crowd. What a performance.
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Federer wins the third set 6-2 and is through to the third round!
Third set: Querrey 2-6 Federer* (sets 0-2) After faltering on the opening point, Federer decides it’s no time to mar what has been a highly satisfactory afternoon’s work. A trademark blend of power and subtlety gets him back in the mix and the, at 30-30, Querrey wrong-foots the Swiss. But an unforced error gets Federer back to deuce, and from there the American can find no answer to two big serves. Game, set and match Federer!
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Third set: Querrey* 2-5 Federer (sets 0-2) At 30-15 up, Querrey leans off a forehand. Inevitably, his shot finds the net. You instantly fear for him and, sure enough, Federer is soon slamming a forehand winner past the beleaguered American to bring up a break point. Some brave hitting from Querrey saves the first, but at deuce he is unable to control a ferocious backhand pass from Federer. Offered another chance, the Swiss makes no mistake, summarily concluding a brief rally by ripping another forehand winner. How many of those has he hit today?
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Third set: Querrey 2-4 Federer* (sets 0-2) As I mentioned earlier, it’s easy to wax lyrical about Federer. So for the sake of perspective, let’s remember that far tougher tests lie ahead. Beating the world No36 is one thing; beating the likes of Novak Djokovic, whom he is seeded to meet in the final, is quite another. Still, you can only beat what’s put in front of you, and today that’s the hapless Querrey. And boy, is he beating him. Another comfortable hold for the Swiss.
Third set: Querrey* 2-3 Federer (sets 0-2) Querrey positively romps through that service game to stay in touch with his oppressor. That’ll make the big man feel better.
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Third set: Querrey 1-3 Federer* (sets 0-2) Big serves, booming forehands and a fat chance for Querrey that he can do anything to prevent another easy hold for Roger. “People sometimes moan about some of the plaudits that get handed out to Federer, but that seventh game in the second set just captures perfectly why many others think those garlands justified,” writes David Wall. “He’s got the hands of a potter, the feet of an ice dancer, and an appearance of total nonchalance. And the guy is 33, for Christ’s sake, an age when most professional athletes struggle to get up in the morning after a match.” You’ll get no argument from me, David.
Third set: Querrey* 1-2 Federer (sets 0-2) There’s a blank expression on Querrey’s face that speaks of utter befuddlement. Maybe he can’t believe the array of shots Federer is throwing at him. Maybe he can’t believe it when Federer hits an air shot at break point off a seemingly easy ball that allows him back in the game. Or maybe, just maybe, he can hear the former British player Tim Henman in the courtside commentary box, and is thinking along the same lines as Jo Woodall, who writes: “Please can someone tell Tim Henman how to pronounce Sam Querrey!” Whatever the explanation, the American belatedly makes an impression on the third-set scoreboard.
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Third set: Querrey 0-2 Federer* (sets 0-2) Talk about rubbing it in. Federer seals a quick game with an ace, and he’s now just four games from victory with only 65 minutes played.
Third set: Querrey* 0-1 Federer (sets 0-2) Querrey’s level didn’t really drop noticeably in that second set. He was just outplayed as Federer ran through his extensive repertoire of shots. Depressingly for the American, he looks increasingly one-dimensional in comparison with the seven-time champion. Querrey doesn’t play badly in this opening game, either, but he still gets pegged back to deuce after opening up a 40-15 lead. A forehand error at deuce draws a resigned look, and Querrey’s mood won’t have improved much when he then misses a short ball off the same wing. That’s the worst possible start to this set for the American, who is two sets and a break down now.
Federer wins the second set 6-2
Second set: Querrey 2-6 Federer* (sets 0-1) An ace of brutal precision, deep down the middle at 40-15, seals the set for Federer. He looks like he could walk on water just now, he really does. That’s a two-set lead and surely there’s no way back for Querrey.
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Second set: Querrey* 2-5 Federer (sets 0-1) Federer produces a game full of outrageous shotmaking, and it’s no surprise when it culminates with another break. The highlight comes when the Swiss hits a lob through his legs – with the racket behind his back, if you please – that really gets the crowd purring. It’s small wonder that Querrey double-faults at advantage Federer. After all, it’s hard to serve when people around you are purring.
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Second set: Querrey 2-4 Federer* (sets 0-1) Picture the scene: it’s a beautiful day, you’re lounging by the lake in Wimbledon Park, and you decide to whip off a few clothes in the probably forlorn hope that an English summer might actually yield a suntan. Then, moments later, you’re on national TV. Cruel, but that’s the fate that’s just befallen a group of people over the road from the All England Club. Meanwhile, Federer wraps up another easy game on serve. He probably doesn’t worry too much about getting a suntan, does he?
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Second set: Querrey* 2-3 Federer (sets 0-1) Querrey hits back with a clinical game of his own, sealing it to 15 with the deftest of … ah, who am I kidding? It was a howitzer of a serve, is what it was.
Second set: Querrey 1-3 Federer* (sets 0-1) It’s easy to wax lyrical about Federer when he’s in this mood, and here he serves up a lovely mix of the functional and the formidable. A flicked topspin forehand, taken on the rise, leaves Querrey looking like he’s playing a different game. A ruthlessly efficient serve-and-volley follows, and in the blink of an eye it’s a love game.
Second set: Querrey* 1-2 Federer (sets 0-1) A 127mph serve – a tad slow by Querrey’s standards, as he’s regularly been in the 130s so far – carries him to 40-0. Half an hour ago, that would’ve been the game done and dusted. But Federer has really found his range on the return and, while he doesn’t win this game, the brutal forehand he sends back from another fearsome Querrey delivery is a measure of the threat he now poses for the Californian.
Second set: Querrey 0-2 Federer* (sets 0-1) The Centre Court crowd was all a-chatter in the early stages of the first set. Not any more. An aura of silence has fallen over the famous old arena, a hushed and almost reverential awe. Yes, Federer is ramping it up. And that’s bad news for Sam Querrey.
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Second set: Querrey* 0-1 Federer (sets 0-1) A glance at the first set stats makes for uncomfortable reading from a US standpoint. Querrey found the court with 71% of his first serves – a remarkable number when you consider the heat he’s putting on that first ball – yet still couldn’t take the set to a tie-break. Does it unnerve the big Californian? Maybe, because a woeful attempt at a drop shot early in the game gives Federer an opening, and the Swiss wastes no time in prising it apart. Helped by another lovely backhand pass and a duff volley from Querrey at 15-40, he’s a game to the good already. That’s a big blow for the American.
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Federer wins the first set 6-4!
First set: Querrey 4-6 Federer* (*denotes server) Now it’s Federer’s turn to assume the air of a man on a mission. He concedes the opening point, but rallies beautifully to serve out the set to 15. Impressive stuff from the No2 seed, and you have to wonder what more Querrey could have done to make an impression in that set.
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First set: Querrey* 4-5 Federer (*denotes server) Ah, the old routine. You know the one: serial Wimbledon winner gets to 4-4 in a set without making any impression against the serve, only to raise his game when it matters to secure the required break. Pete Sampras was a master at it, and Federer looks poised to emulate the great American when a searing forehand winner takes him to 0-40. Querrey, though, has other ideas. His plan? If serving bombs doesn’t work, try serving missiles. A sequence of blistering deliveries – you can really hear the crack of the ball coming off his racket – gets him back to deuce. But Federer is not to be denied: he carves out a fourth break point and this time makes no mistake, pounding a cross-court backhand pass for a winner before turning to his box with a roar. What a shot. He’ll serve for the set.
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First set: Querrey 4-4 Federer* (*denotes server) Federer nets a topspin backhand on the opening point to give his opponent a glimmer of hope, but there’s no mistake from thereon in. Some forceful hitting carries him to 40-15, and not even an intervention from the net cord can halt his charge, the Swiss pummelling away a high forehand volley – aren’t they meant to be difficult? – to seal the game.
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First set: Querrey* 4-3 Federer (*denotes server) Vital seventh game, what vital seventh game? Querrey continues to perform a passable impression of a human tornado on serve, racing through the game to hold to 15. There’s a real aggression about the American just now. Let’s hope he can sustain it. If he does, we could be in for a real treat here.
First set: Querrey 3-3 Federer* (*denotes server) A blistering backhand winner from Querrey at 15-0 must have given Federer something to mull on. Still, said mulling didn’t last long. The seven-time champion closes out the game to 15.
First set: Querrey* 3-2 Federer (*denotes server) After suffering the indignity of losing eight consecutive points against the Querrey serve, Federer can regard that game as progress. Which is to say that he wins a point this time round. No sign of let-up – or, perhaps more importantly, letdown – from the giant American, whose confidence must be growing by the game.
First set: Querrey 2-2 Federer* (*denotes server) Federer races to a 40-0 lead and looks set fair to bag a love game of his own. But a rare forehand error is followed by a double-fault, and suddenly Querrey looks to be in with a shout. The key word there is “looks”: at 40-30, the Swiss pounds an off forehand beyond the reach of the flailing Querrey, and it’s honours even again.
First set: Querrey* 2-1 Federer (*denotes server) Say what you like about Querrey’s track record, he’s playing with genuine belief here. That’s another lightning-quick game, full of thunderous hitting, and he once again wraps things up to love. Ladies and gentlemen, we have a match.
First set: Querrey 1-1 Federer* (*denotes server) He really is unflappable, Federer. At 30-30, he nets a straightforward forehand approach. Break point – and against Querrey that is almost tantamount to set point. But the Swiss coolly hits back, pounding down a big serve that he punctuates with his first “Come on” – a bit early for that, isn’t it Roger? – before surviving another deuce to see out the game. He’ll be relieved to have come through that early test.
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First set: Querrey* 1-0 Federer (*denotes server) Did I mention that Querrey has a big game? He starts with two aces, follows up with a scorching forehand winner, and then fires down an unreturnable serve. That’s a love game and no sign of nerves from the Californian.
Querrey was once tipped as a big prospect for US tennis, but things haven’t quite worked out as the big man would have hoped. Last weekend, when I caught up with Mark Petchey at a tennis roadshow run by David Lloyd Leisure, I asked the former British player and erstwhile coach of Andy Murray if Querrey had fulfilled his potential. Here’s what he had to say: “It’s always difficult to say. Sam’s had a great career. Everyone expects that, when you make a step, you’ll make the next one. But that isn’t always necessarily the way it is in life. Maybe that step you made was the final one; all you can do is keep trying to do better and improve. Sam’s got a big game. He’s someone who has tried to look for ways to bridge the gap between him and the best, and maybe he’s found that frustrating. But he hasn’t allowed himself to swerve too far off course, and on grass he’s always going to be awkward with that serve and his ability to shorten the points. He has the ability to make the match be in his hands and not in yours.” We shall see.
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The players are out on court now. The warm-up is in progress and it won’t be long before we’re underway.
So what else should we anticipate here? In a nutshell, the outcome will be determined by Federer’s ability – or otherwise – to deal with the heavy ordnance coming off the racket of Querrey. That means making a high percentage of returns off the American’s big serve, while taking care not to slip up on his own delivery. Sounds simple, no? As for Querrey, he’ll be looking to keep the points short and put Federer under pressure from the outset. Recent years have shown that the former champion can be vulnerable in the early rounds – his second-round loss to the 116th-ranked Sergiy Stakhovsky two years ago springs to mind, as does his five-set opening round victory over Alejandro Falla in 2010 – but Querrey will need to be at it from the first point.
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Hello and welcome. Roger Federer will saunter on to Centre Court this afternoon to frame the latest chapter in his career-long crusade to rewrite the record books. Should the winner of 17 grand slam titles emerge as the last man standing a week on Sunday – thus overtaking Pete Sampras and William Renshaw, the pair with whom he is currently tied on seven wins – he will be definitively confirmed as the Wimbledon champion par excellence. But let’s not get ahead of ourselves. Federer must first make it through to round three, which means seeing off Sam Querrey, the powerful 27-year-old Californian who reached the final of the grass-court event in Nottingham last week. Querrey’s best showing in SW19 came five years ago, when he followed up victory at Queen’s Club with a run to the fourth round before falling in straight sets to a certain Andy Murray. It’s a modest record for a man of Querrey’s gifts – chief among which are a viciously potent serve and forehand, allied with an athleticism belying his 6ft 6in frame – and he will be eager to make an impression here after the disappointment of losing to Denis Istomin in two tie-break sets in Nottingham on Saturday. The bad news for Querrey is that Federer has the demeanour of a man who really means business just now. Gone are the days when the Swiss maestro bestrode the Centre Court like an elegant anachronism, all gold-trimmed blazer and long white trousers. The Fed Express has had an overhaul, with this year’s pared-down apparel matched by an equally no-nonsense determination to complete the on-court formalities with minimal fuss, judging by his opening round dismissal of Damir Dzumhur on Tuesday. Expect Querrey to have his work cut out from point one.
