Federer Feeling More Confident with “Funny” Balls at Indian Wells

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Federer Feeling More Confident with “Funny” Balls at Indian Wells

Ahead of his quarterfinal clash with nemesis Tomas Berdych, Roger Federer says he’s gained a bit of confidence with the difficult conditions at Indian Wells. After his round of 32 match with Andreas Seppi, Federer said he felt that both players struggled with the high-bouncing and difficult-to-control balls, but after a less complicated win over American Jack Sock on a windy Wednesday, he feels more comfortable with the conditions in the desert.

“I think this ball reacts quite funny of the racquet when you hit too much topspin,” Federer said. “You can shank it very quickly, or the ball just flies out of your racquet, so it’s been a tough ball to get used to.”

He added: “I feel a bit better now after today’s match because last night when I was talking about it I said it was a bit all over the place and my opponent Seppi said exactly the same, so this calms down my nerves a little bit, the match I played today.”

Federer says he’ll have to be ready for quick points and fast conditions on Friday, when he meets the hard-hitting Berdych in the first match of the day session (12:00) in the quarterfinals. He also says that Berdych is undergoing a bit of an uptick in form thanks to his newly created partnership with coach Dani Vallverdu.

“Because he's been around for so long, he knows his potential,” Federer said. “He knows as well it's important to know your limitations as a player so you don't pull off shots that are totally stupid. I think he does very well, and probably also with a new team now he feels eager to try out new things and maybe gives him extra energy. So I think it's going to be an interesting matchup for him having a new team in the back, really.”

Federer has lost five of his last nine to the powerful Czech, and some of those defeats have been difficult to stomach. Berdych has knocked Federer out of Wimbledon (2010) and the US Open (2012) quarterfinals, as well as notching two wins at Masters 1000 events against Federer.

Federer still holds the career head-to-head edge of 12-6.

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