Murray to meet Djokovic in Shanghai final

Updated October 14, 2012 07:13:20

Andy Murray and Novak Djokovic cruised through their semi-finals at the Shanghai Masters to set up a repeat of their memorable US Open final last month.

Murray, bidding for a hat-trick of titles in Shanghai, overpowered world number one Roger Federer 6-4, 6-4 after Djokovic dispatched Tomas Berdych for the loss of one less game.

Federer, who conceded a crucial break of serve in the first set after serving three double faults, was given a reprieve by a rain delay when Murray reached 5-4 in the second set but he could not fend off the inevitable on the resumption.

Murray will be looking for a third consecutive victory over Djokovic after beating the Serbian world number two in the Olympic semi-final and then in their Flushing Meadows showdown.

Djokovic was equally impressive against hard-hitting Czech Berdych in winning 6-3, 6-4.

He roared into a 5-1 lead in the first set before Berdych made a match of it.

Djokovic was again dominant in the second set, capitalising on an early break to lead 4-2 before eventually serving out to sail into his first Shanghai final.

"Obviously it's a big challenge when you play a top 10 player," said Djokovic, who lost back-to-back Shanghai semi-finals in 2009 and 2010.

"Tomas is in great form the past couple of months. He's always a difficult player to play against on any surface because he has a very powerful serve and great forehand.

"I played tactically right. I was putting a lot of returns into the court, putting a lot of pressure on his serve.

"On the other hand, I was serving well when I needed to."

Reuters

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First posted October 14, 2012 07:01:44

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Djokovic masters Murray in Shanghai

Updated October 14, 2012 23:46:22

Novak Djokovic saved five match points before sealing a stunning 5-7, 7-6 (13-11), 6-3 victory over Andy Murray in the Shanghai Masters final.

The iron-willed Serbian second seed, 25, came out on top in a gripping second set tie-break lasting more than 20 minutes to level the match. He broke twice in the decider in a marathon match lasting three hours and 21 minutes.

A gruelling first set contained seven breaks of serve as the players went toe-to-toe in a breathtaking display of power hitting, with neither able to grab the initiative.

But third seed Murray, 25, made what proved to be the crucial breakthrough in the 11th game, recovering from 0-40 to break for a 6-5 lead as an infuriated Djokovic destroyed his racquet, tossing it away in disgust.

It was a different story in the second set, with both players secure on serve until defending champion Murray broke in the seventh game to lead 4-3 when Djokovic put a volley into the net.

But agonisingly for Murray, Djokovic, refusing to be beaten, saved a match point to pull level at 5-5 and the set went into the dramatic tie-break.

The Serbian denied the Scot four more times in the shoot-out, sealing the set with a drive volley that was followed by a trademark fist-pumping celebration.

Two breaks in the decider were enough for Djokovic to claim victory.

Murray beat his rival in five sets in last month's US Open final to secure Britain's first men's grand slam singles title since the 1930s, just weeks after his Olympic triumph in front of home fans in London.

The Scot, who lost the Wimbledon final to Roger Federer, had never been beaten at the Shanghai Masters before Sunday, winning the 2010 and 2011 tournaments.

Djokovic came into the match on a 9-0 winning streak since losing to Murray, a run that included his third China Open title.

Djokovic enjoyed one of the finest seasons in tennis history in 2011, winning three grand slams.

He is hot on the heels of Federer as he tries to secure the year-end number one ranking for the second year in a row.

AFP

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First posted October 14, 2012 23:13:48

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Murray, Federer set up Shanghai semi

Updated October 13, 2012 09:11:34

Andy Murray remained on course for a hat-trick of titles at the Shanghai Masters, despite the best efforts of tricky Czech Radek Stepanek.

Third seed Murray, still on a high from winning the US Open last month, was out-foxed in the first set by the unorthodox Stepanek before recovering to win their quarter-final clash 4-6, 6-2, 6-3.

Number one seed Roger Federer, who is guaranteed to spend a 300th week on top of the ATP rankings, cruised past Croatia's Marin Cilic 6-3, 6-4 to conclude the day's action at the Qi Zhong Tennis Centre.

In the bottom half, Tomas Berdych proved too solid for Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, winning 6-3, 7-6 (7-4), while Novak Djokovic ended the run of Germany's Tommy Haas with a 6-3, 6-3 triumph.

Murray met his match early on against Stepanek, a player who relies on crafty angles, changes of pace and razor-sharp volleys to throw opponents off balance.

Stepanek pounced on some loose play from Murray to earn three break points in the fifth game of the opening set and although two were saved the Czech converted the third.

The 33-year-old Stepanek hardly lost a point on serve in the first set but Murray gradually got to grips with his opponent and seized control at 2-2 in the second set, surging ahead to take the match into a decider.

The momentum briefly switched back to Stepanek when he broke to lead 2-1 in the third but Murray responded immediately.

The Scot began to dominate the baseline exchanges and broke serve in the eighth game before securing victory in two hours and 18 minutes.

"It was quite a scrappy first couple of sets, but obviously the second set I managed to get a break, got a bit of momentum," said Murray, whose match against Federer will be eagerly anticipated after his thrashing of the Swiss at the London Olympics.

"I dictated a majority of the points at the end of the match and I needed to because he was playing with a lot of variety, making it hard for me."

Federer, who beat Murray in the Wimbledon final to earn a 17th major singles title, was largely untroubled against Cilic, although he did waver when attempting to serve out the match.

The Swiss squandered a match point at 5-3 and Cilic took advantage to break for the second time in the match.

Federer was not detained for much longer, however, earning two more match points in the following game and converting the first when Cilic fired a forehand long.

Meanwhile, Djokovic denied Haas his 500th match victory with a clinical performance.

"My return games were exceptional," Djokovic said.

Djokovic will be attempting to win his fifth title of the year, although Berdych will provide a stern test after the Czech's impressive display against Tsonga.

"I think it was a really solid game and solid performance from beginning until the end," Berdych said.

"I think the biggest difference between me and Jo was I was able to take the small chances during the first and especially the second set. It was not many of them, but I was able to keep it and convert it on my side."

Reuters

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First posted October 13, 2012 08:59:21

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Tomic falls at first Shanghai hurdle

Updated October 10, 2012 06:57:32

Australian teenager Bernard Tomic admitted giving only "85 per cent" as he joined compatriots Lleyton Hewitt and Marinko Matosevic in crashing out in the opening round of the Shanghai Masters.

Hewitt started strongly before losing 7-5, 6-1 to Czech Radek Stepanek, but his second set fade out had nothing on that of Tomic.

Tomic admitted the pressures of the tennis tour were taking their toll, the 19-year-old winning just eight points in a miserable second set as he went down 6-4, 6-0 to Germany's Florian Mayer.

His Shanghai flop comes just weeks after he was branded "disgraceful" by Davis Cup team captain Pat Rafter following his US Open defeat at the hands of Andy Roddick.

US tennis great John McEnroe said Tomic seemed to give up during his 6-3, 6-4, 6-0 loss to Roddick in the second round at Flushing Meadows.

And on Tuesday the Australian, who stands six feet five inches (196 centimetres) tall, admitted he was having problems with the mental side of his game as he adjusted to life on the gruelling tennis tour.

Tomic admitted he only gave "about 85 percent", adding: "Today I gave 100 per cent in the first set. I felt in the second set, my 100 per cent wasn't even close to where it should be ... the mental skill is one of my biggest problems."

Tomic, who has slipped to 43rd in the rankings after hitting a career-high of 27, admitted it had been tough-going in 2012 after a breakthrough year in 2011 during which he reached the Wimbledon quarter-finals.

"It's been a long year," he said.

"I played a lot of tournaments. Haven't had time to rest. I think I only rested one week after Roland Garros.

"I think it was the wrong sort of move that I made. I think it's costing me now, the last few months. My performance has not been as good.

"It's been a massive road this year. I didn't plan my schedule as I should have and it's cost me a lot of matches that I probably should have won," added the Australian, who turns 20 later this month.

Mayer, who will next play US Open champion Andy Murray, said he was surprised at how easily Tomic had folded in the second set.

"Of course, second set we don't have to talk about it, he probably didn't try his best, but I'm happy, easy match, not too long on the court," he said.

"In sports you want everybody to fight," he added. "But it's tough, I know it from my side. I also don't fight every match because it's tough, but I try my best."

Matosevic lost 7-6 (7-4), 6-3 to Canadian 12th seed Milos Raonic.

AAP

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First posted October 09, 2012 17:35:34

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Djokovic, Federer still alive in Shanghai

Updated October 12, 2012 06:59:23

Roger Federer survived a huge scare on Friday morning (AEST) to reach the Shanghai Masters quarter-finals and guarantee a 300th career week as world number one as Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray showed ominous form.

The Swiss 17-time grand slam champion came into the match against compatriot Stanislas Wawrinka with an enviable 11-1 head-to head record but struggled to impose himself and was forced to dig deep before winning 4-6, 7-6 (7-4), 6-0.

In a gripping contest lasting nearly two hours, Wawrinka, who teamed up with his illustrious compatriot to win Olympics doubles gold in 2008, broke Federer in the seventh game to lead 4-3 and sealed the first set.

Out-of-sorts Federer, 31, continued to struggle in the second set as the pair swapped breaks of serve and was in desperate trouble when Wawrinka earned a break point for a 5-4 lead, which would have left him serving for the match.

But the Swiss great dodged that bullet and stayed strong in a nerve-jangling tie-break to level the match and immediately broke his 27-year-old countryman at the start of the third set as momentum shifted decisively in his favour.

A dejected Wawrinka failed to win another game as Federer wrapped up the third set 6-0.

Earlier, Serbian second seed Djokovic looking to wrestle the world number one ranking from Federer barely broke sweat against Spain's Feliciano Lopez, wrapping up a straightforward 6-3, 6-3 victory in front of enthusiastic fans.

In-form Djokovic, fresh from his third China Open title in Beijing on Sunday, struck 12 aces and took advantage of some below-par serving by the left-handed Lopez, breaking him three times.

"I'm not very well known around the Tour for big serving," said Djokovic.

"But so far in this tournament, and also in Beijing, it has been working very well for me. It has been giving me a lot of free points, a lot of confidence into the matches."

US Open champion Murray proved far too strong for Ukraine's Alexandr Dolgopolov, serving consistently well and seizing on five out of six break points to win 6-2, 6-2 in just 57 minutes.

It was the first match of the tournament for the Scot, who had a walkover into the third round. The top eight seeds received a first round bye.

"I think I did a decent job," said Murray. "It's very, very different conditions to last week. I think you can see by some of the results here, the guys that have come from Beijing have adapted to the conditions much, much quicker."

Fifth seed Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, currently in line to secure the last singles berth in the elite eight-man field at the ATP World Tour Finals, beat Marcos Baghdatis of Cyprus 6-2, 7-6 (7-2) in a contest containing eight breaks.

Czech fourth seed Tomas Berdych, sixth in the Race to London, set up a quarter-final meeting with Tsonga after fending off a barrage of 17 aces from American Sam Querrey to win 6-2, 6-7 (3-7), 6-4.

Radek Stepanek of the Czech Republic upset eighth seed John Isner of the United States in three sets while 10th seed Marin Cilic of Croatia beat Spain's Fernando Verdasco, also in three sets.

As the season enters its final few weeks, Federer, Djokovic, Murray and the injured Rafael Nadal have already qualified for the ATP World Tour Finals. There are four places still up for grabs.

AFP

Tags: tennis, sport, china

First posted October 11, 2012 21:58:01

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Federer, Djokovic win at Shanghai Masters

Updated October 12, 2012 10:21:38

Top seeds Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic cruised into the third round of the Shanghai Masters on Thursday morning (AEDT) as defending champion Andy Murray progressed without even picking up a racquet.

As the tournament kicked into life with the introduction of the big guns, America's Sam Querrey sent Kei Nishikori tumbling 2-6, 6-1, 6-4 just days after his opponent became the first Japanese player to win the Japan Open.

Swiss world number one Federer, battling to cling on to his top ranking, beat Taiwanese qualifier Lu Yen-hsun 6-3, 7-5 to set up a clash with fellow countryman Stanislas Wawrinka.

Federer's build-up to the Shanghai tournament was clouded by a death threat from a blogger in China, but the Internet user, in a fresh posting on the popular baidu.com site, later apologised. He remained at large.

Djokovic, who will regain the world number one ranking if he wins the title and Federer loses before the quarter-finals, dismissed Bulgaria's Grigor Dimitrov 6-3, 6-2 in just 54 minutes.

"Very pleased with my serving in Beijing and obviously the first match today," said the second seed, who lost just five of his service points. "So that's something that I've been working on, obviously."

The Serbian will next play Spaniard Feliciano Lopez, who beat German 16th seed Philipp Kohlschreiber 6-3, 6-4.

US Open champion Andy Murray did not even have to take to the court as Germany's Florian Mayer withdrew with a rib injury, giving the Scot a walkover.

"I'll practise again. I mean, you never know whether it's a good or a bad thing. I mean, you're obviously prepared to play the match," said third seed Murray, who next faces Alexandr Dolgopolov of the Ukraine.

Japan's Nishikori, suffering from an ankle problem, was brought down to earth with a bump after his title win despite a strong start against Querrey, who won five straight games from 4-1 down in the decider to seal the match.

Nishikori, at a career high of number 15 in the rankings after his weekend win on home soil against Canada's Milos Raonic, had on-court treatment on his right ankle, which he said had been bothering him since last week.

"I tried to play but he had a good serve," he said.

"I broke him first in the third set but couldn't finish the match. It's disappointing but I was close to win with this injury. Nothing I can do," he said.

There were wins for fourth seed Tomas Berdych of the Czech Republic, fifth-seeded Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, sixth seed Janko Tipsarevic of Serbia and 13th seed Wawrinka.

But among the seeds to fall were Raonic and the French pair of Richard Gasquet and Gilles Simon.

As the season enters its final stages there are four places still up for grabs at next month's season-ending World Tour Finals in London. Federer, Djokovic and Murray have all qualified, along with the injured Rafael Nadal.

AFP

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First posted October 11, 2012 07:17:33

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Tomic smokes Fish in Shanghai

Updated October 13, 2011 16:52:17

Australian teenager Bernard Tomic has rallied from a set down to upset fifth seed Mardy Fish and advance to the the third round of the Shanghai Masters.

The 18-year-old won 4-6, 6-1, 6-4 to reverse last week's loss to world number nine Fish at the Japan Open.

The 49th-ranked Australian had only won one match previously against top 10 players, but levelled with two breaks in the second set and a single break in the ninth game of the decider to earn the triumph.

Tomic believed a decision not to get caught up in goal-setting had helped his impressive 2011 form, which includes a run to the quarter-finals at Wimbledon, during which he beat world number five Robin Soderling.

"I don't think I should set targets because, when you set goals, things change, things happen," he said.

"I think you've just got to play tennis, have fun, not have a lot of pressure.

"That's what I've realised, not to have a lot of pressure. If you have fun, good things happen."

Still 10 days short of his 19th birthday, Tomic showed maturity to bounce back after dropping the first set, breaking the fifth-seeded American twice to take the second set

"It's been a good year," he said.

"I can't expect much more from myself. I'm playing well here.

"The surface, the conditions suit me. I've got to play well now in the third round."

Tenth seed Andy Roddick refocused after losing his cool to post a 7-6 (7-3), 7-5 win over Bulgaria's Grigor Dimitrov.

Roddick won a first set tie-break and sealed victory after clinching a topsy-turvy second set that contained five breaks of serve.

After Dimitrov broke Roddick in the ninth game of the second set to lead 5-4, the American smashed his bag repeatedly in frustration but immediately broke back to level at 5-5, saving a set point.

Speaking about the incident, Roddick said: "I don't know that I made a first serve that game, so that was frustrating for me.

"So I was kind of pissed. I felt like I was getting it backwards a little bit."

Also in second-round action, Swiss 13th seed Stanislas Wawrinka beat America's Donald Young 6-7 (5-7), 7-6 (7-2), 6-2 and France's Gilles Simon, seeded eighth, eased past Spain's Albert Montanes 6-1, 6-1.

Earlier, Germany's Florian Mayer, the 15th seed, beat former world number three David Nalbandian 6-3, 6-4 to reach the third round and seventh seed Nicolas Almagro defeated Spanish compatriot Tommy Robredo 7-5, 6-3.

In first-round clashes, Serbian ninth seed Janko Tipsarevic crashed out to Feliciano Lopez of Spain 6-7 (2-7), 6-7 (3-7), dealing a heavy blow to his hopes of reaching the ATP World Tour Finals.

Tipsarevic won his first ATP title earlier this month at the Malaysian Open, but lost in the first round of last week's Japan Open.

Tipsarevic's Serbian compatriot Viktor Troicki, seeded 11, also lost, beaten in straight sets by America's Ryan Harrison.

Austrian 14th seed Jurgen Melzer, who defeated Rafael Nadal to reach the quarter-finals in Shanghai last year, beat Croatia's Ivan Ljubicic and Alexandr Dolgopolov, seeded 12, downed Lukasz Kubot of Poland.

Japan's Kei Nishikori overcame a disastrous start against Robin Haase to defeat the Dutchman 0-6, 7-5, 7-6 (7-5).

AFP/AAP

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First posted October 12, 2011 07:08:18

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