Roger Federer sweeps past Julien Benneteau in round three – French Open 2013
Former world number one, Roger Federer, dumped the local star, Julien Benneteau, in straight sets at the Roland Garros 2013 on Friday. He recorded a 6-3, 6-4, 7-5 victory against the Frenchman to power into the round of 16 at this
major grand slam event taking place in Paris.
Seeded second in this event, Federer stayed on track to grab his 18th Grand Slam title after triumphing over the Frenchman. With this victory, the Swiss avenged his loss in Rotterdam earlier this season and took lead
in the FedEx ATP Head 2 Head series by 5-2 against Benneteau.
The Swiss Maestro, who has yet to lose a set at the Stade Roland Garros this year, commented in a courtside interview after bagging the match, "I'm happy because I have not used much of my energy so far. I'm still there in the
tournament, and therefore, I think I can perhaps go deep in the tournament. I feel totally relaxed. Mentally I'm okay. I'm quite confident. I can feel it, which is what you need to be if you want to go deep and have good results here at Roland Garros."
Federer made a dismal start as he could not hold his serve in the opening game. However, he not only recovered in the fourth game but got the breakthrough in the second last game, subsequently clicking the opener with a 6-3 win
in 28 minutes.
Ranked third in the world, Federer carried his momentum in the following set. He swiftly held his entire serves and availed a break opportunity in the ninth game to clinch the set with a 6-4 score line in almost half hour.
The 31-year-old maintained consistency in his game in the third set. He smashed precise shots to keep his entire serves. Federer got the much awaited break in the eleventh game and pocketed the set by winning seven games to five
in 32 minutes.
Summing up the veteran’s performance, Federer jolted down impressive stats. He didn’t spill any unforced error and fired seven ferocious aces to prevail. The Swiss clobbered a lower first serve share of 65 per cent as opposed to
his rival’s 82 per cent but spectacularly marked 45 out of 51 points on it.
Federer will square off against the 15th seed, Gilles Simon, in the round of 16. The local seed outclassed 18th seeded Sam Querrey in a five-set nail-biter to set-up this encounter. Simon recorded a 2-6, 6-3,
2-6, 7-6(2), 6-2 success against the American.
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