Federer-Nadal Dream Quarterfinals Meeting Dashed as Robredo Upsets Federer at U.S. Open

Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal have never played at the U.S. Open … and that won’t change this year either as dreams of the much-anticipated dream quarterfinal matchup were dashed Monday evening as Tommy Robredo of Spain, the number 19 seed, defeated Federer in straight sets, 7-6, 6-3, 6-4. Federer lost in the round of 16 at Flushing Meadows for the first time in a decade. After the match, Federer says he "self-destructed" Monday night. Had Federer won, he would have reached his 41st Grand Slam quarterfinals, a record held by Jimmy Connors.

"I kind of self-destructed, which is very disappointing,” said Federer, who made 43 unforced errors and managed to convert only two of 16 break points. ”It was a frustrating performance.”

This loss for Federer was very surprising, as not only was he 10-0 against Robredo coming into the match, but he also had won 24 of the 27 sets played. Robredo had also never reached the quarterfinals of the U.S. Open although this is his seventh Grand Slam quarterfinal overall.

The Federer-Robredo was moved from Arthur Ashe Stadium to much smaller Louis Armstrong Stadium, which holds about 10,000 spectators and has a lot less room separating the playing surface from the stands. Federer, accustomed to playing in Ashe, last competed in Armstrong in 2006.

"Roger, for the moment, is the best player of all time," said Robredo. "And to beat him in a huge stadium like the U.S. Open and in a Grand Slam, a match of five sets, it’s like a dream, no? I am so, so happy. I am in quarterfinals again. It was a great day."

He said the change in court was not a factor in Monday’s outcome, though. The blame, instead, was placed on his inability to hit strokes the way he wanted. Federer’s record at the U.S. Open is 7-1 when playing on Louis Armstrong Stadium. Federer’s only loss came in 2000, his U.S. Open debut, when he lost to Juan Carlos Ferrero in the third round, 7-5, 7-6(6), 1-6, 7-6(6). Every time it looked like Federer may come back, he just couldn’t quite get over the hump. He couldn’t get the break of serve he needed or win the big point.

“I kind of feel like I beat myself, without taking any credit away from Tommy,” Federer said. “Clearly he was making sure he was making many balls. It was up to me to make the difference and I couldn’t. I kind of self-destructed, which is very disappointing, especially on a quicker court. Your serve helps you out. You’re going to make the difference somewhere. I just couldn’t do it. It was a frustrating performance today.”

Up next for Robredo is the number two-seeded and fellow Spaniard, Rafael Nadal, a Monday night winner over German Philipp Kohlschreiber, the number 22 seed, 6-7, 6-4, 6-3, 6-1. Earlier in the day, Nadal picked up a squeegee to dry off a practice court ahead of his fourth-round match against Kohlschreiber as the rains hit Flushing Meadows and caused some rescheduling as some matches were pushed to Tuesday. Nadal holds a perfect 6-0 lifetime record over Robredo.

Earlier in the day, Nadal announced that he would return to play for his homeland as they seek to maintain their Davis Cup World Group status with a playoff tie against Ukraine in Madrid later in September. Nadal has not represented Spain since helping them to a 3-1 triumph against Argentina in the 2011 final in Seville, Spain’s fifth victory in the competition. Ironically, Nadal will join up with his quarterfinals opponent, Robredo, along with Fernando Verdasco and Marc Lopez for the Sept. 13-15 match at Madrid’s Magic Box arena.

Also on Monday, it was David Ferrer advancing to the quarterfinals after his near-four-hour 7-6, 3-6, 7-5, 7-6 win over Janko Tipsarevic on the Grandstand stadium court. With just the one Grand Slam final to his name so far, Ferrer will next meet the number eight seed, Richard Gasquet of France in the quarterfinals. Ferrer converted his fourth match point to improve his lifetime record against Tipsarevic to 5-1. Gasquet defeated the number 10 seed, Canadian Milos Raonic Monday evening, 6-7, 7-6, 2-6, 7-6, 7-5. In eight career meetings, Ferrer holds a huge 7-1 advantage over Gasquet to date, as the two met at last year’s Open in the fourth round, with Ferrer taking the victory, 7–5, 7–6(7–2), 6–4.

Credit photos to Adam Wolfthal

David Ferrer advanced to the U.S. Open quarterfinals Monday after his 7-6, 3-6, 7-5, 7-6 win over Janko Tipsarevic

Rafael Nadal was a winner on Monday over German Philipp Kohlschreiber, the number 22 seed, 6-7, 6-4, 6-3, 6-1