Live: Federer Saves 7 M.P. & Forces Fifth Set With Sandgren

Roger Federer holds a perfect (14-0) record in Australian Open quarter-finals and is now one set away from maintaining his unbeaten streak. The third seed fought back from the brink of defeat, erasing seven match points to even the score with Tennys Sandgren at 6-3, 2-6, 2-6, 7-6(8) in their epic clash on Tuesday.

The winner of this match will meet second-seeded Serbian Novak Djokovic or No. 32 seed Milos Raonic of Canada. Sandgren has never played Raonic and lost both of his previous ATP Head2Head meetings with Djokovic in Grand Slams (2018 Wimbledon & US Open).

Federer trails Djokovic 23-26 in their ATP Head2Head rivalry and has lost their past three matches in Melbourne, all of which took place in the semi-finals (2008, 2011, 2016). The Swiss leads Raonic 11-3 in their ATP Head2Head series and won their lone clash at this event in 2013. 

Federer applied pressure from the first ball in the opening set. Sandgren erased a pair of break points in his first service game, then fought back from 0/40 two games later. But Federer kept knocking on the door and it opened at 3-2, with the six-time champion securing a break after Sandgren sent a backhand long. He maintained his slight advantage and cracked a first serve on set point to take the early lead.

The Swiss has been prone to streaks of unforced errors this fortnight and endured another spell of them early in the second set. With Sandgren using his outstanding speed to make Federer play one more ball, the 28-year-old tracked down a deep forehand on break point at 1-0 and floated up a high lob, drawing a smash error from the Federer to grab his first break of the day.

Federer struggled to find the range on his shots, hitting 15 unforced errors throughout the second set. Serving at 2-5, the third seed’s backhand hit the top of the tape on set point and allowed Sandgren to level the match.

The unseeded American scored another break against the Swiss to lead 2-0 in the third set, causing the crowd inside Rod Laver Arena to gasp in unison. With the prospect of a maiden Grand Slam semi-final becoming more realistic, Sandgren blocked out any signs of nerves and remained calm.

Facing triple break point at 2/0, he unleashed a series of booming serves and eventually held. Sandgren continued to increase his first-serve percentage, beefing it up from 46 per cent in the first set to 70 per cent in the third set.

Federer left the court for a medical timeout at 3-0, but it didn’t change Sandgren’s dominance on serve. Most of his aces came in the Ad court, but he also consistently pushed the Swiss out wide to his forehand in the Deuce court, setting up one-two punches to keep the points short.

Although Federer’s movement appeared to be hampered, he continued to fight for every point. He bravely erased five set points on his serve at 5-2, but Sandgren converted his sixth chance after a Federer backhand found the net. Sandgren pumped his fist at his team as he moved closer to a career-defining win.

Read More: Why Sandgren Won’t Take His Shot At Federer For Granted

Both players traded comfortable service holds in the fourth set until Sandgren reached match point with Federer serving at 4-5. But the prospect of defeating the six-time champion suddenly showed in the American’s groundstrokes, with three match point opportunities vanishing due to nervy errors. Federer eventually held with a forehand winner and brought the crowd to their feet.

Sandgren remained calm and erased a break point at 5-5 to keep himself out in front. The set eventually moved to a tie-break and it was Federer who blinked first, hitting a loose forehand to give the American a 4/3 mini-break advantage. Another three match points came Sandgren’s way at 6/3, but the Swiss shockingly erased all of them and leveled the score at 6/5 with a swinging forehand volley winner.

A seventh match point came and went at 7/6 after Sandgren hit a slice backhand into the net. Federer, at long last, earned a set point of his own at 8/7, but the American quickly removed it with an ace. Federer secured a 9/8 mini-break lead after the American pulled a forehand wide and brought the match to a decider after Sandgren sent a smash from the baseline well long.

More to come…