Despite the straight sets win Federer was far from flawless, especially in the third set when he saw a 4-1 lead evaporate and fell 5-4 behind due to some uncharacteristically poor serving. But he bounced back to see off the bearded Frenchman, who acted erratically throughout - screaming wildly, tossing his racket and kicking the ball after sending it into the net.
"I think it was a bit sort of up and down," said Federer. "I think it's always tricky against Benoit, because there's a lot of tactics going on. Never quite the same point. Sometimes he plays very deep in the court, then he plays up in the court. That's maybe why you draw errors out of each other rather than winners at the end. The match maybe doesn't look at good. Plus he covers the court very well. Sometimes you have a tendency to overplay, as well. But overall I'm happy. I think it was not a bad performance by any means by me. I can be pleased, so it's all good."
A decade removed from his last title in New York, the five-time champion (2004 to 08) avoided his earliest exit in 18 visits to Flushing Meadows. He prevailed after one hour and 56 minutes, striking 27 winners and notching his 35th match win of 2018.
Federer and Kyrgios will meet for the fourth time in their budding ATP Head to Head rivalry, with the Swiss claiming the two most recent encounters - on the hard courts of Miami last year and on the grass of Stuttgart this year. All three of their meetings have resulted in third-set tie-breaks. In fact, eight of the nine sets played were decided by tie-breaks.
"We've had some brutal matches over the years. We enjoy playing against each other," said Federer. "He has one of the best serves in the game and he's super talented."
Date: 31 August 2018, Source: ATP and Reuters
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