Roger Federer forces his way through Grega Zemlja into the quarter-finals – Qatar Open 2012
Former world number one, Roger Federer of Switzerland, exhibited another magnificent display of his vintage form, when he outplayed the Slovenian qualifier, Grega Zemlja, in the second round of the ExxonMobil Qatar Open on Wednesday. The second seeded Swiss maestro merely took an hour to dispose of his opponent in straight sets, 6-2, 6-3, powering his way into the quarter-final rounds of the ATP (Association of Tennis Professionals) World Tour 250 event in Doha, Qatar.
It was a completely one-sided affair, with Federer dominating every second of the contest to continue impressing the tennis fans. The Swiss maestro carried on his winning streak (stretching it to 19 matches after Wednesday’s victory) and made a berth in the round of eight at the season-opening tournament with ease.
"It’s important not to get frustrated in the wind," Federer said in an on-court interview. "I used to be very emotional when I was younger. It was a tough part understanding how to win in the wind. But today, it doesn't bother me anymore. You get used to it. It can be tricky when you enter the first tournament of the season, and right away you play an incredibly tough three setter, let's say. The body feels that, and that's why I'm happy to be through into the quarter-finals without too much trouble."
It was the first time Zemlja met Federer in singles encounters and proved to be a total mismatch for the might Swiss. Federer delivered 65 per cent of his first serve on target and claimed 24 out of 32 points on it en route to victory. The second seed crafted a total of six break opportunities and converted half of them to wipe out the bleak Slovenian opponent in the most assertive manner.
The opener witnessed an early serve break from Federer, racing away to 4-1 in no time to get hold of the contest right from the beginning. Zemlja just one more serve before dropping it again in the eighth game to award the first set to Federer at 2-6. With the opening set in his pocket, Federer kept his momentum rolling in the following set and broke the Slovenian serve again in the eighth game to serve out of the match up at 6-3.
Federer will take on the seeded Italian, Andreas Seppi, in the quarter-final round of the Qatar Open on Friday. The Italian was successful against Guillermo Garcia-Lopez of Spain in the second round draw to book a berth among the final eight of the tournament.
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