Estoril Open News and Events

Roger Federer

© JLS

Steady rain didn’t bother Roger Federer at the Estoril Open Thursday, as the ATP World No. 1 wasted no time in beating Romanian Victor Hanescu 6-3, 6-2 in 61 minutes for a place in the quarterfinals.

Federer made his move in the fourth game of the opening set, with two superb passing shots to break the Hanescu serve.

The 26-year-old Swiss broke twice more in the second set and committed a total of 28 unforced errors – rather half he made in the opening match.

Having dropped just 11 points on serve in his third career win over Hanescu, the World No. 1 rushed for cover from the steady rain. At no point did the chair umpire halt the contest on Court Central.

After the match Federer went to practise for 25 minutes with Swiss Davis Cup captain Severin Lüthi on an outside court.

Federer, who has hired Jose Higueras as his coach for the Estoril Open this week, is hoping to win his 54th career ATP singles title. 

In the first three-and-a-half months of the year, he has suffered semifinal exits at the Australian Open (l. to Djokovic), ATP Masters Series events in Indian Wells (l. to Fish) and Miami (l. to Roddick), and a first round loss in Dubai (l. to Murray).

For the first time since 2000 he’s began the first three months of the year without a title. It is also his longest final drought since the end of 2002 and first month of 2003 when he went seven tournaments without a final.

Federer, who is competing in his first non-ATP Masters Series tournament on clay since Gstaad in July 2004 (d. Andreev in final), compiled a 32-6 clay court record the last two years en route to back-to-back runner-up efforts at Roland Garros.

The 26-year-old will meet a Portuguese: either qualifier Joao Sousa or wild card Frederico Gil, who became two years ago the first local to reach the quarterfinals since Nuno Marques in 1995.

Gil was leading Sousa 7-6(5), 0-1 when play was suspended due to rain. The pair will return to Court Central at 10am on Friday to resume the match.

Meanwhile Czech Jiri Vanek advanced to his first ATP-level quarterfinal since reaching the same stage at Stuttgart in July 2007 (l. to Wawrinka).

The 27-year-old broke four times to beat eighth-seeded German Michael Berrer 6-3, 3-6, 7-5 in two hours and 24 minutes on Centralito court.

Vanek had previously beaten the World No. 66 on the ATP Challenger circuit at Freudenstadt, Germany, in 2003. Prior to this week Vanek had won just one match in five ATP tournaments in 2008.

German Denis Gremelmayr will challenge Vanek in the quarterfinals – his first at ATP-level since 2006 Munich (l. to Rochus).

The World No. 104 beat Russian Teimuraz Gabashvili 7-6(6), 6-1 in one hour and 41 minutes, despite converting five of 17 break point opportunities.

Gabashvili, a 22-year-old quarterfinalist at Rotterdam and Zagreb this year, drops to 6-5 on the season.