The great escape continued for Roger Federer at the Australian Open 2020 as he survived a thrilling five-setter to defeat Tennys Sandgren 6-4, 2-6, 2-6, 7-6(8), 6-3 in the quarterfinals. Federer saved seven match points en route to the semifinals but feels that he ‘does not deserve’ this victory as he got a bit lucky.
After the match, the Swiss maestro looked like he couldn’t believe what a turnaround he made in the match. The 38-year-old was embarrassed and astounded. He was not sure of how he managed to edge past the American and escape another five-setter scare in Melbourne.
“I got incredibly lucky today”: Roger Federer
Federer’s voice was breaking while talking to Jim Courier in the post-match on-court interview. The 20-time Grand Slam champion was emotionally and physically exhausted after a 3 hour and 30 minutes of gruelling tennis.
The Basel native was also suffering from a groin injury, which affected his lower leg in the third set. However, Federer admitted that he ‘believes in miracles’ as he took an off-court medical timeout, which helped him to fight through the injury and win the match.
“You’ve got to get lucky sometimes. Those seven match points you are not under control. It might look that way but I was just hoping that maybe he was not going to smash the winner, to keep the ball in play, who knows what he’s thinking about? I got incredibly lucky today,” noted Federer.
“I don’t deserve this one”: Federer
He further added: “As the match went on I started feeling better and the pressure went away and I just tried to play. Again, got a little luck to get the break. I think I served really well for most of the match, especially in the end. I don’t deserve this one but I’m standing here and I’m obviously very happy.”
Roger Federer Reveals Major Injury Concerns Ahead Of Semi Finals
Roger Federer escaped by the skin of his teeth today. An upset looked just a minute away as Tennys Sandgren got hold of 7 match points. However, the resilient Swiss star saved all seven of them to complete an astonishing comeback. He went on to win the match 6-3,2-6,2-6,7-6(10-8), 6-3.
This was the second match in a row where Federer made a late resurgence after faltering early. However, what was different today were the alarming errors in his game that would make a longtime Federer fan sad.
However, a lot of that can be attributed to his injury concerns which were glaringly clear during the match.
Just before the semifinal, Federer’s comments have sparked some injury concerns.
What Did Roger Federer Say?
This is what Federer had to say about his possible injury after confessing that Sandgren was the better player-
“I really started to struggle with my leg, throughout the match. Just tried to stay out there and a make a match out of it. Make him win it and not me, just give it to him. And I was able to do that till the very end, it’s unbelievable how I escaped, but it was definitely a lucky one.”
Roger Federer
However, the comments Federer made after this have raised concerns about whether he’d be in the condition to face off against Novak Djokovic. His leg and groin are really troubling him. Considering the form Novak is in, he’ll punish Roger for every little mistake.
Why Did Federer Continue The Match Despite Injury Concerns?
Federer tried to push through despite his issues. He revealed why he did that –
“The thing is, when you’re having an issue, big or small, most important is that you know how bad it can get. If you feel like you can actually really injure yourself and it can cost you weeks and months of your season, then it’s obviously better to stop.”
However, Roger felt that this injury would keep him out only for a maximum of 10 days-
“But I felt like this is stiffness in my hip or groin or hamstring. Whatever it may be, for a few days, maximum 10 days and I have that to be honest. The question is, how do you deal with it. For me, it was not bad enough to stop. Like I said I believe in miracles on the tennis court.”
Roger Federer revealed that a major motivation to stay was also his opponent. Just for his sake, he wanted to complete the match. This is how Roger conveyed this noble emotion-
“If he starts feeling bad, it’s not like he hasn’t played this tournament as well. He’s also maybe getting nervous or carrying an injury I don’t know about. So let’s just stay in the match and try some things out. If I stay with him, maybe I might feel better. Because actually now I know my problem really and what I can and can’t do. Then it gets really simple, it’s all on the opponent. That’s where it also gets difficult for him to play. And I know that and I’m really sorry about it.”
Whom Does Federer Face Next?
Roger is all set to face Serbian no 1 Novak Djokovic in the next match. To be honest, Novak will walk in as the resounding favourite. However, a man who can save 7 match points can actually never be counted out.
We are in for an action-packed semi-final.
