Federer survives big scare as Mannarino retires injured

TDT | Manama

The Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com

Eight-times champion Roger Federer survived a massive scare against Adrian Mannarino before advancing to the Wimbledon second round yesterday when the Frenchman retired with a knee injury after slipping on the court.

The match was poised at 6-4 6-7(3) 3-6 6-2 with Federer forcing a fifth set before Mannarino, celebrating his 33rd birthday, decided he could not continue.

“It’s awful,” Federer said in his on-court interview.

“It shows that one shot can change the outcome of a match, a season, a career. I wish him all the best and I hope he recovers quickly so we see him back on the courts. “He could have won the match at the end.

Obviously, he was the better player, so I definitely got a bit lucky.”

Federer, seeded sixth, was serving with a 4-2 lead in the fourth set when the 41st-ranked Mannarino slipped while attempting a return and twisted his right knee.

The Frenchman received medical attention on Centre Court and limped back to complete the set before shaking hands with Federer, who now has a 7-0 head-to-head record against him.

“You don’t get many walkovers throughout a career and you try also not to have it happen to yourself,” Federer added.

“It’s a reminder of how quickly it goes.

But of course, I’m obviously happy I can get another chance for another match here. Australia’s Ashleigh Barty overcame a mid-match wobble to reach the second round as rain once again halted play on the outside courts yesterday.

Barty came through 6-1, 6-7 (1/7), 6-1 against Carla Suarez Navarro in a match filled with emotion on Centre Court, whose roof ensured the match could be finished. Germany’s Alexander Zverev eased into the second round of Wimbledon yesterday beating Dutch qualifier Tallon Griekspoor 6-3, 6-4, 6-1 in just 89 minutes.

The 24-year-old French Open semi-finalist had lost to qualifiers at Wimbledon on two occasions -- Ernests Gulbis in the third round in 2018 and to Jiri Vesely in the first round in 2019 -- but he made no mistake this time round.