2011 Mutua Madrid Open: Roger Federer vs Xavier Malisse – Preview
Swiss super star Roger Federer will take on Belgian Xavier Malisse on Thursday in the third round of 2011 Mutua Madrilena Madrid Open in Spain.
This is the ninth meeting between the two players with Federer leading the head-to-head series 8-0. Their most recent meeting took place at the 2011 Australian Open in which Federer thrashed the Belgian in straight sets 6-3, 6-3,
6-1. However, the circumstances have changed a lot since then. Following his inconsistent performances on the ATP tour, Federer has moved down the ATP rankings to world number 3 now.
The running season has proved to be quite an ordinary one for the former world number one. Although he bagged a title at Doha, he has struggled against the likes of Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal. Dubai Duty Free, BNP Paribas
Open and Sony Ericsson Open have all resulted in a failure for the 29-year-old.
Here at the red clay courts of Madrid he is looking in absolutely fabulous touch and if he can maintain his form for the rest of the tournament he can cause all sorts of problems for other top seeded players at the tournament.
Federer, who still believes in his abilities and strength, is confident of snatching the world number one spot again.
Xavier Malisse is having a terrible time on the tour since the year 2011 has started. He has experienced early round losses at several ATP tournaments. The 30-year-old Belgian fell to Indian Somdev Devvarman in the second round
of 2011 BNP Paribas Open. Her poor form continued at the Sony Ericsson as well where he was knocked out in the second round by Michael Llodra. Monte Carlo and Barcelona also brought disappointment for the world number 49.
Malisse defeated Victor Hanescu of Romania in his opening match at the tournament. He then eased past Taiwanese Yen-Hsun Lu 6-2, 6-2 to book a third round berth at the tournament. He will be hoping to change the course of his career
by reaching the final stages at Madrid Open.
Both players are in decent form and a tough and exciting encounter is expected. However, considering Federer’s on-court abilities and temperament, he is likely to pull off victory in three tight sets.
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