Federer and Cilic won one each of the opening two sets with the same scoreline (6-2) before an enthralling third that saw the Swiss star survive a tie-breaker before winning the fourth set 6-2.
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Swiss maestro Roger Federer advanced to the third round of the Roland Garros on Thursday after beating Croatia’s Marin Cilic 6-2, 2-6, 7-6, 6-2 in what was a pretty competitive game of tennis. The French Open is the Swiss’ first major tournament since being sidelined with injuries for over a year and many predicted that he might not be able to deliver. As he has done throughout his career, the former World No.1 proved his doubters wrong yet again. Federer was involved in a heated argument with the match umpire at one point but he did not let it affect his game as he comfortably saw out the final set of the match.
Federer and Cilic won one each of the opening two sets with the same scoreline (6-2) before an enthralling third. The set went to a tie-breaker in which Cilic also displayed an inspired performance. However, it was Federer’s class that prevailed as he won the tie-breaker 7-4 and went on the win the final set 6-2 to seal his victory.
Federer scored 16 aces compared to Cilic’s 12 and the double faults could have one of the factors behind the Croatian’s loss. He conceded six double faults, whereas Federer conceded only one. Both had the same win percentage on the first serve at 75%. However, Federer had a higher win percentage on the second serve at 57% compared to Cilic’s 46%. The Swiss won five out of 16 break points whereas Cilic managed three out of eight.
Currently ranked eighth in the world, the 39-year-old Federer moved around the court like a man much younger. Of course, there were lapses in his game, as expected from someone who has been out of the sport for as long as him, but his shot accuracy was near perfect. A lot of the points he scored were just inside the court, and they were mostly intended.
There was some in-game tension between Federer and the umpire. The Swiss had a heated exchange with the official after Cilic had complained that Federer was taking too much time to get his towels from the back of the court in between points.
