Federer survives five-set scare from Haas

By Julian Linden

MELBOURNE (Reuters) – Top seed Roger Federer survived a
five-set scare from unseeded German Tommy Haas on Monday to
reach the quarter-finals of the Australian Open.

At two sets up the world number one’s game inexplicably
fell apart before he regained his composure to win 6-4 6-0 3-6
4-6 6-2.

“This for me was a good match to win in five,” a relieved
Federer said in a courtside interview.

“I like to be pushed like this. I’m happy I had a tough one
now and I’m still in the tournament.”

The Swiss looked to be cruising to his fourth consecutive
straight-sets win when he ripped through the first two sets in
an hour before Haas staged a remarkable fightback to force the
match into a deciding fifth set.

Federer got the vital break in the sixth game when his
German opponent missed an easy volley and broke again in the
eighth game to advance to the quarter-finals.

He will play Russian fifth seed Nikolay Davydenko, who beat
Slovakian ironman Dominik Hrbaty 4-6 4-6 6-4 6-2 6-3. Federer
won the Australian Open in 2004 and has claimed five of the
last eight grand slam titles.

“Everything turned around. I was playing fantastic in the
first two sets then he played fantastically in the next two,”
Federer said.

“I was really just trying to break his momentum. I knew
that all I needed was a break because I was serving pretty
well.”

Haas made an impressive start, winning his first two
service games and forcing Federer to fend off break points but
was unable to keep in touch with the Swiss master once he
raised his game.

Haas dropped his serve in the fifth game when he hit a
forehand shot over the baseline allowing Federer to take
control of the opening set.

Federer seized control of the second set when he broke in
the opening game and he conceded just 15 points before he
wrapped up the set in 28 minutes.

But Haas, who beat Federer over five sets at the 2002
Australian Open before injury stalled his career, refused to
give in.

He broke Federer to love in the sixth game and held his own
service games to take the set then broke the top seed again in
the fourth set as the top seed’s game started to unravel.

Federer committed just 17 unforced errors in the first two
sets but made 35 in the next two, drawing gasps from the crowd
when he started missing routine shots.

Haas fended off two break points in his second service game
in the final set but the pressure finally told when he hit a
forehand volley past the baseline to drop his next game then
crunched a forehand wide to concede defeat in three hours.