Nadal through while Ferrer falls
Originally published on: 26/02/10 11:59
However, fellow Spaniard David Ferrer did not fare as well, falling to Japan’s Kei Nishikori, who battled through a tough five-set match to post a 6-4 6-4 3-6 2-6 7-5 victory.
A Grand Slam where he hasn’t enjoyed much success in the past, Nadal was able to find a way to work past any previous struggles he has had.
“(I am) happy about how I played today,” Nadal said. “I played a consistent match, so (I am) happy for the victory and especially happy to be in (fourth) round another year.”
The Spaniard next will face American Sam Querrey in the fourth round. Querrey had made some noise for the Americans with a 7-6 (7/5) 7-6 (7/5) 6-2 upset win over number 14 Ivo Karlovic. The 20-year-old reached the fourth round here for the first time in his career by matching the hard-serving Karlovic as best he could, notching 20 aces to the Croatian’s 24.
“I know it feels great,” Querrey said. “My first fourth round of a major, and it’s great that it’s the US Open. It’s the one that if I had to pick one to win it would be this one.”
James Blake, however, was not as lucky. He fell at the hands of his close friend, Mardy Fish, who recorded a 6-3 6-3 7-6 (7/4). Blake was looking to advance to the fourth round of the US Open for the fourth straight year, but Fish had other plans, advancing past the third round in a Grand Slam for the first time in his career.
For his second straight round, sixth seed Andy Murray had his hands full. After needing a fourth set to edge French lefthander Michael Llodra on Thursday, Murray battled past Austrian Jurgen Melzer 6-7 (5/7) 4-6 7-6 (7/5) 6-1 6-3. Gael Monfils of France had a much more impressive showing, using his superior athleticism to top seventh seed David Nalbandian of Argentina 6-3 6-4 6-2. The 21-year-old fired 12 aces and took advantage of 41 unforced errors by Nalbandian to set up a matchup with Fish.
In another match that went the full five sets, Stanislas Wawrinka came back from two sets down to top Italy’s Flavio Cipolla 5-7 6-7 (4/7) 6-4 6-0 6-4. Wawrinka, who claimed gold at the Beijing Olympics in doubles with Federer, will meet Murray in the fourth round. Also Saturday, 16th seed Gilles Simon of France was upended by number 17 Juan Martin Del Potro of Argentina 6-4 6-7 (4/7) 6-1 3-6 6-3. Del Potro took another step toward winning his fifth straight tournament.
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