• Sony Ericsson Open

Federer loses in Miami thriller

ESPN staff
March 30, 2010
Rafael Nadal was made to work hard for his win © Getty Images
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Roger Federer is out of the Sony Ericsson Open in Miami after succumbing to Tomas Berdych in a three-hour thriller 6-4 6-7 7-6.

The world No.1 had a match point in the deciding tie-break but Berdych grabbed an unbelievable victory in a match that was short on quality but high on drama, akin to the types of cup finals often seen in football.

Federer's shot-making is usually so good that his titanium mental strength is rarely mentioned, but the champion Swiss had to rely almost wholly on his fighting abilities to give himself a chance in this round-of-16 marathon. Berdych, like Federer, didn't play his best tennis for more than one or two points in succession, and had to overcome his own nerves and a vocal crowd as much as his out-of-sorts opponent.

Berdych seemed to tighten up after claiming the first set with relative ease, but Federer couldn't capitalise on a string of break points in a ten-minute opening game of the second set. Federer continued to improve on his terrible start, playing his way into enough form to take the second in a tie-breaker.

Every winner seemed to be joined at the hip with an unforced error for Federer, and he conceded an early break to Berdych in the third set before getting back to 4-4 as the Czech started to visibly crumble near the finish line. All the momentum was with Federer going into the tie-breaker and he won the point of the match to get it to 5-5, half-volleying into an empty court after Berdych had dived full stretch to keep the ball in play at the net.

Federer then earned match point with a line call so close that Hawkeye had to discover new levels of zoom to analyse it, and Berdych looked broken as he slumped despondently onto the net for a good 20 seconds. He could only grin to himself as he walked back to serve, and as he finally started to play as if he had nothing to lose, he claimed the next three points and victory.

Rafael Nadal remains on course for his first Sony Ericsson Open title after emerging victorious 7-6(5) 6-4 in a hard-fought round-of-16 match against David Ferrer.

Although Nadal showed no physical signs of the injury problems that have blighted him, moving around the court with speed and freedom, he did at times seem circumspect in his shot selection.

Ferrer, who seemed to lack the self-belief required to pounce on Nadal's indecision, was unable to capitalise. This was most glaring in the first set tie-break; At 5-4 up, Ferrer was content to play defensive strokes from the baseline instead of looking to assert his will.

Nadal went on to win the point with an exquisite dropshot, before going on to claim the set as Ferrer's chances of victory faded. Although Nadal did lose his serve in the second set, he claimed two breaks of his own to set up a tantalising quarter-final tie against Jo-Wilfried Tsonga.

Tsonga used his power to overwhelm Juan Carlos Ferrero 6-2 6-2 in a shade under an hour. Ferrero was unable to cope with the ferocity of his opponent's groundstrokes as Tsonga dominated the majority of the rallies; he won 63% of the points on offer during the match.

At 3-1 down in the second set, Ferrero fleetingly threatened a revival by breaking the Tsonga serve for the first - and only - time in the match. True to form, Tsonga immediately secured a break of his own, before winning the next two games to secure a well-deserved victory.

Andy Roddick had to display all of his celebrated determination to get past Benjamin Becker 7-6(4) 6-3. It was not a classic performance from Roddick, who was grasping for fluency throughout, but he displayed plenty of resilience - particularly when saving the first set.

At 1-4 and 0-40 down, Roddick managed to dig deep and find the menacing first serves that had deserted him during an error-strewn start to the match. He saved that game, appearing galvanised afterwards as he clawed the first set back to 4-4 before eventually winning it.

The second set was rather more routine as Becker wilted in the mid-afternoon heat, Roddick clinching it with just one break. "He was really aggressive early on, and I was kind of on my heels, but I was able to dig in and make it competitive. I played a lot better in the second," Roddick said. "At 1-4 and 0-40 I thought it could be a blessing in disguise - if he didn't break me then it would be on his mind - and it worked out that way."

Roddick next faces Nicolas Almagro, who beat Thomaz Bellucci 6-4 3-6 7-6(3) in an epic encounter that spanned two hours and 37 minutes.

Fernando Verdasco upset seventh-seed Marin Cilic 6-4 7-6(3) while Robin Soderling outclassed Fernando Gonzales 6-0 6-7 6-2.

Mardy Fish, conqueror of Andy Murray, exited the tournament after he retired at 1-6 0-1 against Mikhail Youzhny with back and knee complaints.

© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.
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