Federer wins five-set thriller at Australian Open

Six-time champion Roger Federer said it was a "big relief" to survive an epic five-set marathon and seal his 100th Australian Open win on Friday, fending off a dogged challenge from John Millman.

The Swiss master was rattled by the all-guns-blazing Australian, but scraped through 4-6, 7-6 (2), 6-4, 4-6, 7-6 (10-8) over four hours and three minutes to stay alive in his quest for a 21st Grand Slam title.

Federer recovered from 0/3 and 4/8 deficits in the eighth fifth-set tie-break of the championship for an historic victory that broke his three-match losing streak in fifth sets. He’d previously lost fifth-set matches to Grigor Dimitrov in the 2019 US Open quarter-finals, Novak Djokovic in the 2019 Wimbledon final and Kevin Anderson in the 2018 Wimbledon quarter-finals. His most recent fifth-set win came on the occasion of his 20th Grand Slam crown at the 2018 Australian Open (d. Cilic).

“Oh God, it was tough,” Federer told former World No. 1 Jim Courier in an on-court post-match interview. “Thank God it was a super breaker, otherwise I would have lost this one. Where to start? I think John played a great match. He is a great fighter, a good guy and it came down to the wire at the end. What a match.

“This one was unique in many ways that I was able to turn a super breaker around like this in an atmosphere, it was crazy, fun, and I couldn't be more happy. Big relief.

“Things were extremely difficult, not just in the breaker, but throughout the match for me against John,” he added.

“A bit of luck maybe goes one way. I had to stay so focused, take the right decision. He was doing all that stuff at the beginning of the super tie-break, coming up with the goods and I thought, ‘Okay, I guess I tried.’ I didn’t play too bad after all and I was getting ready to explain myself in the press conference. What a match and John deserves over half of this one.”

Federer, who improved to 3-1 lifetime against Millman, hit 62 winners, including 16 aces. Although he committed 82 unforced errors, Federer won 85 of his 111 first-service points, but went three of 10 on break points. Millman won 178 points to Federer’ 181 total points.

“I had to figure out a way to get him in trouble on his serve,” said Federer. “He’s not known to be the best server. He’s got a good serve, but it is not like the tall guys coming in super fast and everything. But he was doing such a nice job of not making many mistakes and I was struggling in the forehand cross court, backhand cross court. He was dominating both sides, so I think for me it was a matter of holding my own serve, figure out a way and give myself time and chances.

“I never really felt comfortable and I thought John did a great job of keeping me on my back foot. I couldn’t always step in, until the last shot. I went for it. He picked the wrong side. It was tough. John made it so difficult for me tonight.”

Millman, who prides himself in being one of the fittest players on the ATP Tour, started in confident fashion, holding serve to love and trading powerful groundstrokes with Federer, who lost his serve in the fourth game when Millman hit a backhand approach winner. Millman consolidated the break for a 4-1 lead by recovering from 0/30 and saving one break point, but got caught on the run by Federer when serving for the set at 5-3. In the next game, errors from Federer handed Millman the 32-minute opener.

Federer said he’d need three matches to start playing his best tennis and the Swiss started to fire in the second set, testing Millman on serve with deeper returns but could not convert his lone break point at 5-5, 30/40. Federer stepped up at 3/1 in the tie-break, seizing control with a big forehand that left Millman scrambling and rushed the net at 6/2 to strike an athletic backhand volley winner.

There was little to choose between the pair in the third set, but Millman gave Federer a look at 4-5, when he hit a double fault at Deuce, only to slam the door with an ace down the middle. Federer, now rushing the net and putting Millman deep behind the baseline, weathered an aggressive barrage and clinched the 45-minute third set when Millman over-hit a backhand.

Millman refused to give in and in the seventh game of the third set, chased down deep groundstrokes at 30/40 to force a forehand error from Federer and a 4-3 advantage. Unlike the first set, when Millman was broken when serving at 5-3, the 30-year-old didn’t make the same mistake, striking four powerful first serves into court for a cool love hold.

“I could have gone away easily in that fourth set. Roger was playing pretty well. Had the momentum. I thought I turned it around pretty well. I left everything out there.”

When Federer overhit a mid-court forehand long to give Millman a 2-1 lead in the decider another upset was on the cards, but never rule out a champion. Federer bounced back immediately for 2-2, and later Millman needed to recover from 15/40 for a 4-3 lead. As the pair’s fourth ATP Head to Head meeting edged closer to a deciding-set tie-break, Federer applied the pressure firmly on Millman’s shoulders, but the Australian didn’t buckle.

Millman stormed to a 3/0 lead in the eighth fifth-set tie-break of the championship and carried the momentum, including a superb forehand passing stroke at 7/4, but Federer won six straight points for a famous victory - ending with a forehand winner into space (his 62nd winner of the match).

“If you watched to get up to 8/4, I hit a running forehand line pass, a running forehand cross pass, a stop volley that I was probably dead to rights to make,” said Millman. “Then Roger made it tough. I don't know. I left it all out there. That's what the best players, I guess.

“It's not as if it was double faults or first-ball errors. I went after it. At 8/8, I had a chance, he played a pretty good volley, I'm running full tilt. Missed one line. Again, that would have been a pretty good pass.

“Then I played a great point I think at 8/9 and he picks the right way. What do you do, you know?”

For a man who has contested 1,510 tour-level matches and 157 tour-level finals, the main purpose of third-round matches is often simply to progress further in the draw for Federer. But the 20-time Grand Slam champion was clear that playing matches like tonight’s epic, regardless of the result, is one of the main reasons he continues to play the sport.

“If I do play tennis it's because of winning titles, trying to win as many matches as possible, enjoying myself out on court, but also being in epic matches like this. It doesn't always have to be finals,” said Federer.

“As long as the crowds are into it, you have a great battle with an opponent who you really admire and respect, it's a good feeling. I'm happy I had that match tonight. I hope I would feel the same way also if I would have lost.”

Federer will next play Marton Fucsovics of Hungary in the fourth round on Sunday.

Date: 24 January 2020, Source: ATP and AFP