HAMBURG (Germany), May 14: Top seed Roger Federer shrugged off a sleepy start to reach the final of the Hamburg Masters with a 6-3 6-4 victory over Russian Nikolay Davydenko on Saturday. The defending champion lost the first two games and saved break points to avoid going 3-0 down at the Rothenbaum before rousing himself to outplay the world number 20 with a beguiling mix of fierce groundstrokes and deft drop shots.
In the final Federer will play Richard Gasquet, the French teenager who upset him in the Monte Carlo Masters quarterfinals last month. Gasquet thrashed Belgian Christophe Rochus 6-1 6-1 to reach his second ATP Tour final.
World number one Federer also made a poor start in his quarter-final win over Guillermo Coria on Friday and he admitted it was habit he needed to break with the French Open, the sole grand slam he has yet to win, only nine days away.
The Russian double-faulted to lose serve early in the second set and Federer took full advantage, confirming victory with a crunching forehand winner after 71 minutes on centre court.
The 23-year-old has yet to drop a set in Hamburg, a tournament he won in 2002 and 2004. He is attempting to win his sixth ATP Tour title of the season on Sunday.
Like Rochus, Gasquet had to qualify for the event but that was where the similarity ended.
The 18-year-old, who lost to Spaniard Rafael Nadal in the Monte Carlo semifinals after his win over Federer, clubbed his lightweight Belgian opponent into submission in a 56-minute exhibition of power tennis.
Federer had three match points before losing to the teenager 6-7 6-2 7-6 in Monte Carlo and said he was looking forward to their rematch.
Results (semifinals)
Roger Federer (SWI) bt Nikolay Davydenko (RUS) 6-3, 6-4; Richard Gasquet (FRA) bt Christophe Rochus (BEL) 6-1, 6-1
Mauresmo IN final
ROME: Defending champion Amelie Mauresmo defeated Russian sixth seed Vera Zvonareva on Saturday to reach the final of the Rome Masters for the fifth time.
The French second seed, who beat Zvonareva in the semifinals here last year, won 6-2, 6-4 to clinch a place in Sunday’s showpiece where she will meet either top seed Maria Sharapova or Swiss eighth seed Patty Schnyder.
Victory for Mauresmo, who is yet to lose a set at the Foro Italico, extended her 100 per cent record over the 20-year-old Zvonareva to seven matches.
Mauresmo, who has never gone beyond the quarter-finals of the French Open, said playing without the pressure of an expectant home crowd allowed her to relax more.
Mauresmo, whose triumph in Antwerp earlier this year took her tally of singles titles to 16, wrapped up the first set with relative ease before claiming the first two games of the second set.
But having piled the pressure on the 20-year-old Russian, Mauresmo’s concentration slipped and she allowed Zvonareva to snatch the next three games.
Mauresmo regained her composure to hold serve before breaking back for a 4-2 advantage which paved the way for a hard-fought win.
The Rome Masters is a warm-up event for the French Open, which starts on May 23.—Agencies
HAMBURG (Germany), May 14: Top seed Roger Federer shrugged off a sleepy start to reach the final of the Hamburg Masters with a 6-3 6-4 victory over Russian Nikolay Davydenko on Saturday. The defending champion lost the first two games and saved break points to avoid going 3-0 down at the Rothenbaum before rousing himself to outplay the world number 20 with a beguiling mix of fierce groundstrokes and deft drop shots.
