By Richard Pagliaro | Wednesday, July 8, 2015
Richard Gasquet prevailed in a fierce fight with Stan Wawrinka, 6-4, 4-6, 3-6, 6-4, 11-9, to reach his first Wimbledon semifinal since 2007.
Photo credit: CameraSport/Stephen White
On the surface of split decisions, Richard Gasquet delivered his biggest Grand Slam knock-out.
In a battle of brilliant one-handed backhands, Gasquet displayed variety and plenty of grit edging fourth-seeded Stan Wawrinka, 6-4, 4-6, 3-6, 6-4, 11-9 in a thriller to advance to the Wimbledon final four for the first time in eight years.
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The 21st-seeded Frenchman will face world No. 1 Novak Djokovic for a trip to the final. The defending champion did not face a break point in dissecting U.S. Open champion Marin Cilic, 6-4, 6-4, 6-4. Djokovic has done some ballet with wife Jelena this year; the top seed may well have been dancing with delight at Gasquet's triumph. Djokovic, who lost to Wawrinka in the Roland Garros final last month, is 12-1 lifetime against Gasquet, including a 6-1, 6-2, 6-3 stomping in the Roland Garros round of 16.
It was billed as a battle of the best one-handed backhands in the game and more than matched the hype. A match of superb shotmaking and severe spikes of nerves—Gasquet double-faulted away the second set and Wawrinka slapped a double fault on set point to drop the fourth set—built to a crescendo in the climactic 83-minute decider.
The 29-year-old Frenchman not only confronted the more explosive two-time Grand Slam champion, he had to stare down ghosts of self-doubt: Gasquet had lost 15 of his last 16 matches against Top 10 opponents. Things can happen quickly on grass. So when Gasquet failed to serve out the match at 5-3 in the fifth set, he had plenty of time to ponder that moment and get spooked by another major missed opportunity.
Not today.
To his credit, Gasquet kept battling and made sound split-second decision at critical stages. He withstood 73 winners, including 22 aces, from the powerful Swiss by changing the spins and heights of his shots and shrewdly attacking net at the right times. Gasquet, a highly skilled volleyer who does not always employ that element of his game, won 13 of 19 net trips in the fifth set.
"I really wanted to win," Gasquet told the BBC afterward. "It's a big match against Stan. I wanted to win. Of course, it's a bit tough after leading 5-3. It's a great match for me. It would have been very difficult for me [to lose] after winning 5-3 so I'm really happy with the way I played and the way I fought."
Spreading the court with his slider serve and angling off his slice backhand, Gasquet got off to a confident start. Keeping the ball low, he snatched the first set when Wawrinka wailed a one-hander well beyond the baseline. It was the first set the Swiss lost in the tournament.
Throughout the opener, Gasquet unleashed his lawn-hugging slice backhand to draw several of Wawrinka's 14 errors as the Roland Garros champion repeatedly tried cranking flat drives off that slice. At the start of the second set, Wawrinka turned that tactic against his foe, hitting a low slice and coaxing a loopy forehand error from the Frenchman to break for 2-0.
Wawrinka couldn't stand prosperity, overhitting repeatedly in a sloppy fifth game. Gasquet wrong-footed the Swiss into a tumble on turf as he broke back for 2-3. Showing his first real sign of nerves, Gasquet hit a rushed error followed by his first double fault of the day to face set point. He saved it with an aggressive backhand and erased a second set point with a high forehand volley. Wawrinka kept his return low, coaxing Gasquet into lining a forehand approach into net for a third set point. The tight server clanked his second double fault of the game as Wawrinka leveled.
Finding his range and rhythm, Wawrinka began to uncoil into his shots with more conviction, while signs of self-doubt crept into Gasquet's game. He muttered at himself after one error then slapped a shot into net gifting his opponent the break and a 3-1 third-set lead. The fourth seed rapped an ace off the edge of the sideline backing up the break for 4-1. Taking the first strike in more rallies, Wawrinka won 13 of 15 first-serve points and committed just four unforced errors streaming the through the third set.
When Wawrinka thumped three consecutive aces to deadlock the fourth set, 4-all, it appeared a tie break was imminent. Then Wawrinka tightened up severely, sailing his backhand wide to face set point and driving a double fault into the tape—his only double fault of the day—as Gasquet grabbed the fourth set to force a decider.
Grass can bring out Gasquet's all-court assertiveness. On other surfaces, he sometimes drifts back behind the baseline searching out obscure angles with his sweeping one-handed backhand. On grass where split-second decisions are vital, Gasquet works the low bounce of his slider serve and slice backhand to push opponents into awkward spots and open the court for the attack.
Wawrinka earned the first break point of the decider in the opening game, but failed to move his feet and poked a return into net as Gasquet held. Creating some absurd angles off his backhand, Gasquet earned triple break point in the eighth game. On hit third break point, he ran down a dropper and shoveled a running forehand pass down the line to earn the first break of the fifth set.
Serving at 5-3, Gasquet was two points from a semifinal return, but pushed a volley wide to face break point. A blazing backhand crosscourt rally ensued with neither man giving up ground until Gasquet netted a backhand down the line. A fired-up Wawrinka pointed an index finger to his temple, breaking back for 4-5 as Gasquet's co-coach, two-time former Wimbledon semifinalist Sebastien Grosjean, shifted uneasily in his seat.
Wawrinka whizzed a backhand pass to earn a break point at 9-9, but the return let him down as he netted a return off a 122 mph serve and Gasquet held on for 10-9.
Mixing high-bounding topspin with some slithering ankle-high slice, Gasquet tried to keep the ball out of Wawrinka's expansive strike zone. He used a short slice to draw the error earning triple match point. Wawrinka fought off the first two, but sent his signature shot, the one-hander, sailing long on the third. Gasquet fell flat on his back in pure joy. It was about the only time all day he looked truly floored.