TBO.com - TBO is Tampa Bay Online

Federer Extends His Streak On Grass

ADVERTISEMENT

The Associated Press

The Tampa Tribune

Published: June 24, 2008

WIMBLEDON, England - Wimbledon began with a few surprises Monday. There was lots of sunshine, Serena Williams wore a raincoat anyway, and Roger Federer's changeover routine was interrupted by a friendly visit from his opponent.

The tennis went mostly as expected. Federer, Williams and new women's No. 1 Ana Ivanovic won in straight sets. Australian Open champion Novak Djokovic also eased into the second round, while American men went 1-4.

The top-ranked Federer began his bid for a sixth consecutive Wimbledon title by winning the first match on Centre Court and beating former doubles partner Dominik Hrbaty 6-3, 6-2, 6-2.

During a changeover one game from the finish, Hrbaty, 30, broke with protocol by wandering over to the seated Federer.

"I looked over and there he was," Federer said. "He asked if he could sit next to me. I said, 'Sure. There's no problem. There's an extra seat.' We go way back. ... He said it might be his last Wimbledon, so it was almost a little bit emotional."

Said Hrbaty: "If it had been someone else, I wouldn't have done it. ... We've had a lot of good times together. I just wanted to tell him he's a great friend of mine, and I appreciate that."

Federer extended his grass-court winning streak to 60 matches, including 35 at the All England Club, and yet his continuing domination is in doubt because he struggled the first half of the year.

Williams fielded five queries about the stylish white trench coat she wore onto court before beating Kaia Kanepi 7-5, 6-3.

"Today definitely was not an easy match," Williams said. "She was playing unbelievable. I felt like she wasn't making any errors. I just felt like I just had to hang in there and stay positive."

The match was the first for the Williams sisters since they lost on the same day in the third round at the French Open. They flew to Florida and prepared for grass by hitting on hard-courts.

The unorthodox preparation for Wimbledon is standard for the sisters - they've won the title six of the past eight years.

"We just go home and practice in the hot sun," said Serena, who is seeded sixth. "We're so ready to leave Florida. We're like, 'We're going to do anything we can to stay at the tournament as long as we can so we don't have to go back in that heat.'"

Defending champion Venus Williams begins her bid for a fifth Wimbledon title today when she faces wild card Naomi Cavaday of Britain.

Ivanovic, 20, played her first match as the No. 1 woman and French Open champion, and seemed comfortable in the role, beating Rossana de Los Rios 6-1, 6-2.

The highest-seeded player to lose was No. 7 David Nalbandian, eliminated by Canadian Frank Dancevic 6-4, 6-2, 6-4. Lleyton Hewitt, who beat Nalbandian in the 2002 final, and two-time Grand Slam champion Marat Safin also won.

The only American woman to join Williams in the second round was Bethanie Mattek. The lone U.S. male to win was Bobby Reynolds, who advanced when Filippo Volandri retired with a sore left knee.

Share this:

Loading Comments...

Email Print

ADVERTISEMENT