After a perfect end to the 2003 season, Roger Federer started the next coachless, parting ways with Peter Lundgren after four years. Heading to Melbourne, Roger wanted to show off his talents and secure the first notable result in Australia, losing to David Nalbandian in a grand duel a year ago.
The Swiss overtook three rivals outside the top 100 to stage the clash against local star Lleyton Hewitt. With a negative 2-9 record against the Australian, Federer made sure to improve, beating Lleyton 4-6, 6-3, 6-0, 6-4 in two hours and 18 minutes for the first quarter final.
in Melbourne. There, Federer faced another player against whom he had a bad record, David Nalbandian. After suffering two major defeats against the Argentine in 2003 at the Australian Open and the US Open, Roger was looking forward to another one.
He took a 7-5, 6-4, 5-7, 6-3 victory in two hours and 41 minutes for the second semifinal at the Majors after Wimbledon. Federer won six more points than David, drew 20 aces and defended eight of 11 break opportunities, challenging David to repeat those numbers.
The Argentinian did his best to keep in touch, taking five breaks out of Roger’s 12 chances and losing focus in crucial moments to push the opponent. Federer cleared a 5-5 break point in the first set with a serve, gained momentum and beat Nalbandian minutes later 7-5.
David led 2-0 and 4-3 in the second set, losing three straight games and allowing Federer to win and open a huge lead. Losing ground in the finals of the first two sets, Nalbandian corrected this in the third, taking Roger’s serve at 5-5 and catching it with a big winner 7-5, expecting more of the same. for the rest of the game.
Instead, Roger took a 3-0 lead in the fourth set and sealed the deal with a service winner in Game 9 for the first semifinal in Melbourne, setting up the clash against Juan Carlos Ferrero.
Schett on Roger Federer’s goals in 2021
Former world number
7 Barbara Schett believes Novak Djokovic will end his career with more Grand Slams than Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal. In a recent interaction with Tennis365, Schett said Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal have a good chance of eclipsing Roger Federer’s record as they continue to be in top physical shape.
“I think this battle to see who wins the most majors will come down to Novak and Rafa,” said Schett. “Novak and Rafa look good physically and for me I think Djokovic will overtake Nadal and Federer at the end”.
Barbara Schett also discussed Roger Federer’s chances at Wimbledon, where the Swiss have set themselves lofty goals despite not being in their best form. “I would love to see Roger win Wimbledon again,” she added.
“He has to believe he can do it or he wouldn’t play, but he’s been out for so long and his body is going to hurt when he plays the best of five games in the set.”
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