Julien Benneteau stuns Roger Federer in the quarters – ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament 2013
French contender, Julien Benneteau, surprised everyone after upsetting the top seed, Roger Federer, in straight sets at the ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament 2013 on Friday. He jolted down a 6-3, 7-5 victory against the Swiss Maestro to progress into the
semi-finals at this ATP (Association of Tennis Professionals) World Tour 500 series event taking place in Rotterdam, Netherlands.
Benneteau showed exceptional skills to outclass the former world number one for the second time in his career in an 80-minute marathon. With this triumph he not only avenged his loss at the London Olympics last season but also lowered trail in the FedEx
ATP Head 2 Head series against Federer.
“Today, I knew I could do it because I had already done it in Bercy. I had to do a lot of good things. I prepared myself to play my game, not to try to play better than I can, but to be aggressive when I could. I needed to show physically and mentally I
was here and that I wanted it.”
The 31-year-old French made a thunderous entry at the Ahoy Rotterdam. He drew the first blood in the opening game and jumped to a 2-0 lead. Despite losing his edge in the fourth game, the French reeled off last four games and eventually clicked the opener
with a 6-3 win.
Ranked 39th in the Emirates ATP World Tour Rankings, Benneteau kept momentum rolling in the proceeding set. He got the desiderated break in the fourth game and leaped to a 4-1 lead. The French squandered his lead in the seventh game but remained
focused. He got the breakthrough in the last game and clinched the set with a 7-5 score line.
This was the jubilant Frenchman’s 200th career victory. He reflected:
“I heard that but I did not know. It’s a special one. It’s nice when the numbers fit with a very good win. So I will remember this.”
Next in queue for the Benneteau is his compatriot, Gilles Simon, who rallied past fifth seeded Martin Klizan in a three-set thriller to set up this clash.
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