MADRID, (Reuters) – Roger Federer’s hopes of claiming a second straight Madrid Open title were dashed when the world number two suffered a surprise 6-4 1-6 6-2 third-round defeat to Japanese young gun Kei Nishikori yesterday.
Playing his first tournament since taking a seven-week break following his quarter-final exit at Indian Wells, Federer became the second high-profile casualty at the clay Masters event following Tuesday’s shock second-round defeat for world number one Novak Djokovic to unseeded Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov.
The Swiss maestro’s reverse, the 23-year-old Nishikori’s biggest win since he beat Serb Djokovic in the semi-finals in Basel in 2011, also deprived fans of a possible last-four clash between Federer and local hero Rafa Nadal.
Nadal made smooth progress earlier yesterday when he thumped unseeded Russian Mikhail Youzhny 6-2 6-3 to claim a spot in the quarter-finals.
He was joined by third seed Andy Murray, who had to come from a set down to get past 16th-seeded Frenchman Gilles Simon 2-6 6-4 7-6 in a three-hour marathon which ended after one o’clock in the morning local time (2300 GMT).
Federer, a three-time champion in Madrid and chasing his first title of the year, seemed to struggle in the breezy conditions inside the Magic Box arena and his game was littered with uncharacteristic errors.
After losing the first set, he upped his game to level but lost his serve early in the decider and Nishikori broke for a third time in the match to seal victory.
The world number 16 had lost to Federer in their only other meeting, the 2011 Basel final, and told a news conference it was an “amazing” experience to beat the man who had been one of his childhood idols.
“Actually, you know, to beat him, that was one of my goals for my tennis career,” he said.
“And it happens on clay, it’s amazing. You know it’s not really my favorite surface.”
Nishikori will play another Spaniard, wild card Pablo Andujar, for a place in Saturday’s semi-finals, while a chastened Federer heads back to the practice court ahead of next week’s Rome Masters.
“Credit to Kei he got it done and was more solid in the wind,” the 31-year-old said.
“He played better than I did, so the better guy won today, that’s for sure.
“I’ll sit together tonight or tomorrow with the team and discuss what the plan is for the next few days and weeks.
“So I’m excited for that, because clearly I have no choice but to hit the practice courts.”
