INDIAN WELLS, California, (Reuters) – World number two Roger Federer and Australian Open champion Novak Djokovic each stormed into the fourth round of the Indian Wells ATP tournament with lop-sided victories yesterday.
Federer, in pursuit of a record fourth title here, swept past Argentine Juan Ignacio Chela 6-0 6-2 while Serb Djokovic extended his perfect record this season to 14-0 by pulverising Ernests Gulbis 6-0 6-1. Chela was broken five times by Federer in dazzling sunshine at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden as the Swiss master eased to a commanding victory in 58 minutes.
“Clearly I am very happy,” the 16-times grand slam champion said courtside after ending the match with a rasping backhand winner down the line. “I’m a bit surprised it went this easy at the end with the scoreline. I was able to stay aggressive for the entire match. He struggled with his serve a little bit and his game fell apart.”
Djokovic, seemingly in a rush to reach his third consecutive final this year, broke an error-prone Gulbis three times in the opening set and twice in the second to steamroll to victory in just under an hour.
The stands surrounding the showpiece stadium court were barely a quarter full when the third-seeded Serb fired down his fourth ace of the day to end a heavily lopsided match.
“I cannot ask for a better start to the year,” world number three Djokovic told reporters after beating the Latvian for a fourth time in five meetings. “The last three months have been unbelievable.
“I’m just building up on that confidence and continuing to play well. I have been playing great tennis, the best tennis of my life.”
IMPERIOUS FORM
Djokovic, who claimed his second grand slam crown at the Australian Open in January and his 20th ATP World Tour title at last month’s Dubai championships, was in imperious form against Gulbis.
