Roger Federer sweated out a tough win in his first match on Madrid's blue clay on Wednesday, holding off Canada's Milos Raonic 4-6, 7-5, 7-6(4) to survive the third round of the Masters 1000.
The Swiss needed two-and-a-quarter hours to beat the 23rd-ranked youngster with 36 winners and 37 unforced errors in a battle which was not decided until a third-set tiebreaker.
“I was trying to weather the storm,” said the Swiss. “I don't know where my game is at now, and I don't care. I'm happy to train well and be playing some matches.”
Federer will next face Richard Gasquet, who beat Serb Viktor Troicki 7-5, 6-3.
Federer held off seven of Raonic's break points and ended the Canadian's streak of first serve points at 44 for the week.
Federer took victory in his first match since losing in the Miami third round to Andy Roddick on March 26. He has now won 78 of his last 79 matches against players outside the Top 20.
Spaniards advance
Spanish clay powerhouses Rafael Nadal and David Ferrer got on and off the controversial blue clay courts as quickly as possible with the Iberian pair racing into the third round.
Second seed Nadal spent 80 minutes winning his first match against Nikolay Davydenko since 2009, earning a 6-2, 6-2 victory. Fifth seed Ferrer dismissed Czech Radek Stepanek 7-6(4), 6-2 in almost the same match time.
Croatian Marin Cilic overcame eighth seed John Isner 7-6(4), 7-6(3) as the big American fired 14 aces in his losing effort. Cilic dodged a bullet with six double-faults, including one as he held match points in the second-set tiebreaker.
Frenchman Gael Monfils continued his winning return after more than a month out with an abdominal injury, as the 12th seed won with Russian Igor Andreev withdrawing with a right shoulder injury trailing 6-3, 1-0. Compatriot and fourth seed Jo-Wilfried Tsonga beat racquet-smashing American Ryan Harrison, whose temper tantrum just a few days after leaving his teenaged years, did not help in a 6-2, 7-6(4) loss.
The results:
Men: Third round : Tomas Berdych bt Gael Monfils 6-1, 6-1.
Second round : Juan Martin del Potro bt Mikhail Youzhny 6-4, 7-6(1); Nicolas Almagro bt Marcel Granollers 6-3, 7-6(3); Roger Federer bt Milos Raonic 4-6, 7-5, 7-6(4); Gilles Simon bt Guillermo Garcia-Lopez 6-4, 6-3; Janko Tipsarevic bt Federico Delbonis 7-6(5), 6-7(8), 6-3.
Richard Gasquet bt Viktor Troicki 7-5, 6-3; Jo-Wilfried Tsonga bt Ryan Harrison 6-2, 7-6(4); Fernando Verdasco bt Alejandro Falla 6-7(4), 6-4, 6-4; Rafael Nadal bt Nikolay Davydenko 6-2, 6-2. Doubles: Second round : Mahesh Bhupathi & Rohan Bopanna bt Santiago Gonzalez & Christopher Kas 6-1, 7-6(2).
Women: Third round : Maria Sharapova w/o Lucie Safarova; Serena Williams bt Caroline Wozniacki 1-6, 6-3, 6-2;
Victoria Azarenka btAna Ivanovic 6-4, 6-4; Li Na bt Angelique Kerber 7-5, 6-4; Samantha Stosur bt Petra Cetkovska 6-3, 6-2.
Second round: Ekaterina Makarova bt Maria Kirilenko 6-4, 6-4; Lucie Hradecka bt Petra Kvitova 6-4, 6-3.
