Federer wins

 

Originally published on: 26/02/10 12:13

Federer, who will be looking to add to his tally of 13 Grand Slam victories at Melbourne Park next week, began the eight-man invitational tournament at the former home of the Australian Open with a 6-2 6-3 win over the one-time world number one.

The match lasted just 57 minutes with Federer bouncing back from defeats to Andy Murray in Abu Dhabi and in Doha.

“I was a little rusty in the beginning, missed quite a few forehands, but I thought it was a good match overall,” he said.

“There were a few gusts of wind, which makes it not easy to play, but I felt like I was playing okay today.”

Earlier, Federer’s compatriot Stanislas Wawrinka also had an easy win over Cypriot Marcos Baghdatis 6-2 6-2.

Wawrinka broke the former Australian Open finalist twice in each set, and said afterwards the match was a lot easier than he thought.

“I think Marcos was not playing very good,” Wawrinka said.

“He is looking for his confidence, so maybe that it was why it was so easy and fast.”

Federer’s next opponent will be Spanish Davis Cup hero Fernando Verdasco, who had little trouble defeating rising Croatian star Marin Cilic 6-2 7-5.

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