By Richard Pagliaro | Wednesday, May 27, 2015
Roger Federer rallied from a break down in both the second and third sets for a 6-2, 7-6 (1), 6-3 victory over Marcel Granollers.
Photo credit: Roland Garros
Prescient court positioning and fluid movement often put Roger Federer in the right spot before the ball even landed on Court Suzanne Lenglen.
Late in the third set, Federer merged his racquet skills and creativity to leave Marcel Granollers seeing double.
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Running right, Federer skidded to a stop, reached back across his body and dug out the rare two-handed backhand lob into the corner. Granollers retrieved it with a sensational leaping backhand, but Federer anticipated the reply and slashed a one-handed backhand winner down the line, dancing to a stop near the flowers that ring the front row evoking a roar from the appreciative crowd.
Even when he was out of position, Federer often delivered the right response to stirring effect.
Rallying from a break down in both the second and third sets, Federer displaced Granollers, 6-2, 7-6 (1), 6-3 to advance to the Roland Garros third round for the 14th time.
"I think I was actually playing very well. I wasn't nervous really, to be honest," Federer said in his post-match press conference. "I think things went well for me for the first couple of sets. I think I was in control. Even though I was down a break in the second set, I still felt the match was in my racquet. And when you feel that way, obviously you're always going to feel more confident, more comfortable, not nervous."
Wasting little time against an opponent he's mastered in the past, Federer stepped into the court, struck with aggression and broke for a 2-1 lead.
The second-seeded Swiss made the break stand up, sealing the 24-minute opening set on the strength of imposing serving—Federer dropped just two points on serve—and crisp shotmaking. He nearly tripled Granollers in winners (11 to 4).
AC/DC guitar player Angus Young was among the fans in the Lenglen crowd and the Swiss delivered his own shoot to thrill moments, including a series of bewildering angled drop shots midway through the second set.
A French Open doubles finalist last year, Granollers can play from all areas of the court, but lacks a single imposing shot to really trouble Federer, who can drill his forehand to the Spaniard's forehand and create mid-court opportunities.
Still, the 57th-ranked Spaniard hung tough, ran hard and extended rallies when he could. Granollers, who won just nine points on the Federer first serve, jammed a biting return to break for a 4-2 second-set lead.
Continuing to surge forward in the court, Federer blocked a backhand volley winner for break point then fired a forehand winner down the line, breaking back for 3-4. The second seed played angled volleys shrewdly, winning 30 of 37 net points.
Lifting his level in the tie break, Federer reeled off six straight points to take a commanding two-set lead.
It wasn't an entirely pristine performance from the four-time finalist, who showed some signs of frustration barking at himself after a few miscues.
"The thing you don't want to do is you want to start off badly sets, and that's what happened in the beginning of the third," Federer said. "I played a horrible game. It was just very disappointing and frustrating. But after that, I must say, it was probably my best spell of the match right after that."
Lapses in concentration and shot selection cost Federer early in the third set. Squandering a 30-15 lead, he misfired on a forehand to drop serve for the second time in the opening game of the third set. Granollers battled back from 0-30 down, holding for a 2-0 advantage.
Transitioning from defense to offense helped Federer turn the set around. A sliding angled defensive backhand pass gave him the break point, Federer followed a forehand to net, knocking off a high backhand volley to break back. He consolidated at love for 3-2.
"I was down 2-Love in the third. The reaction was what I wanted," Federer said. "Maybe that's also one of the reasons why I did get a bit angry with myself, because it was really just such a bad game. I was able to play with variation today. I was offensive. I was successful at net. So overall, I was very, very pleased."
In the next game, Federer showed his creativity improvising that rare two-handed backhand rainbow lob to set up his flashy one-handed winner. The shot not only thrilled the crowd, it transformed Federer from athlete to audience. He paused for a moment to watch video on the big screen above the court.
The final games featured some subtle drop shots and a botched tweener attempt from Granollers off a blasted return. Federer wrapped up an entertaining win in one hour, 47 minutes raising his Roland Garros record to 63-15.
The second-seeded Swiss will play 87th-ranked Bosnian Damir Dzumhur for a spot in the round of 16. Federer has reached the French Open fourth round 12 times in his career.