Federer fails to clinch Swiss Open title
Wimbledon champion Roger Federer has failed to follow up his grand slam success by losing in the Swiss Open final to Czech player Jiri Novak.
In a gruelling five-set match lasting almost three hours, the Basel-born tennis hero saw his dreams of winning his first Swiss title elude him again.
The roller-coaster match saw both players fighting back after going behind. But in the final set, Novak came back from a heavy loss in the fourth set to take the match 5-7, 6-3, 6-3, 1-6, 6-3.
Coming straight from Wimbledon to the tournament in Gstaad, Federer was visibly tired by the time he reached Sunday’s final.
“This was a marathon for me, playing matches every day or every other day for the last several weeks,” he said.
He started the match at a canter, jumping to a 5-2 lead in the first set, but then had to fight to take the set 7-5.
Novak took the next two sets without too much struggle, as Federer started to show signs of fatigue, failing to hold several serve games and making an increasing amount of unforced errors.
And although the Swiss player found a second wind to sweep through the fourth set, he could not maintain his form and lost the final set.
Disappointed
The 21-year-old Federer had been hoping to follow up his Wimbledon triumph with a success on Swiss soil, after failing to win in the finals in Basel in 2000 and 2001.
“It’s very disappointing and frustrating, even if it was a great week,” he said. “It’s the third final I’ve lost at home.”
Novak, meanwhile, was pleased to return to form on Swiss soil, after failing to compete in Gstaad last year due to injuries.
“I must be one of the happiest men in the world right now,” Novak said. “I’ve won the title here twice and won my fifth ATP title.”
The Czech player, who has lost the last three matches played against Federer, said he had managed to play better than his Swiss counterpart this time round.
But he also acknowledged he had the advantage of having more time to prepare for the match.
“I have to congratulate Roger. It’s not easy stringing all those matches together, nor changing from grass to clay.”
swissinfo with agencies
Roger Federer was born in Basel on August 8, 1981.
Earlier this month he became the first Swiss man to win Wimbledon after beating the Australian Mark Philippousis.
Until this year’s final in Gstaad, Federer had failed to get beyond the second round of the Swiss Open.
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