Roger Federer narrowly avoided joining Rafael Nadal on the Roland Garros scrapheap when he battled back to defeat Germany’s Tommy Haas 6-7 (4/7), 5-7, 6-4, 6-0, 6-2 to reach the French Open quarter-finals on Monday.
The second seed, still needing a French Open to become only the sixth man to complete a career Grand Slam, will now face either American sixth seed Andy Roddick or Gael Monfils, the 11th-seeded Frenchman, for a place in the semi-finals.
It was Federer’s fifth career recovery from a two-set deficit and he did it for the second Grand Slam in succession after the Czech Republic’s Tomas Berdych had been 2-0 ahead in the Australian Open fourth round.
But having seen four-time champion Nadal, the man who has beaten him in the last three finals, sensationally suffer his first defeat in Paris on Sunday, Federer came dangerously close to seeing his lifetime dream also evaporate.
At two sets to the good, 31-year-old Haas had a break point in the eighth game of the third set which, had he seized it, would have given him the chance to serve for the match.
But Federer, who hasn’t failed to reach a Grand Slam quarter-final since his third-round loss to Gustavo Kuerten here in 2004, saved it with a forehand pass and the German began to wilt with the Swiss reeling off 14 of the last 16 games.
American second seed Serena Williams kept her hopes of a third successive grand-slam title alive after blazing through her fourth round match to set up a quarter-final meeting with Russia’s seventh seed Svetlana Kuznetsova.
Williams, the 2002 champion, took just 53 minutes to see off Canadian 24th seed Aleksandra Wozniak 6-1, 6-2, while Kuznetsova triumphed 6-4, 1-6, 6-1 against Polish number 12 seed Agnieszka Radwanska.
”It was my most focused match so far and I was able to stay focused throughout,” said Williams, who had looked short of sharpness in her opening three matches, twice being taken to three sets.
”This is when everything counts. I have to pick up my level and play again, especially against Svetlana, who moves really well and doesn’t do anything bad.”
Williams, bidding for her 11th Grand Slam singles title, was able to move her opponent around the court at will and took full advantage of the Canadian’s feathery serve to cruise into the French Open quarter-finals for the sixth time.
Kuznetsova, the 2006 French Open runner-up, overcame a mid-match stumble to beat 20-year-old Radwanska 6-4, 1-6, 6-1 on Court Suzanne Lenglen.
”I was nervous today, I don’t know why,” said Kuznetsova.
”I think she was too. The first set was not great for both of us but I served well. The second set I played really bad and did a lot of mistakes. I wasn’t moving much.
”After I went to change my clothes [at the end of the second set] and then I started thinking a bit, I improved my game.
”Something positive about this match is that it happened today and I didn’t lose. I’m not happy to play three sets but I’ve been through a bit of a fight. The other matches were too easy so I needed a test.” — Sapa