Is No. 18 a peak too steep for Federer?

In sport, there is ageing, there is ageing and then there is ageing. Not all athletes age the same way, just as no two minds work exactly the same way all the time.

Recently I had the chance to revisit an issue that has engaged my attention through four decades in sports writing to try and find a fresh perspective on a subject that is debated all the time; yet, one that is never easily resolved to everyone’s satisfaction.

Ever since Novak Djokovic dismissed His Royal Highness Mr. GOAT (greatest of all time) at the Australian Open a few weeks ago, the question that has confronted me – thanks to friends who believe I am an expert on the subject, although it is one in which nobody can be certain that he is right — is this: Does Roger Federer have another Grand Slam title left in him?

On the face of it, it is not a mind-bogglingly difficult question to answer for a person who has closely followed tennis for four decades and has covered over 50 Grand Slam championships.
But then, only when you are alone and sit and ponder the question does it strike you that you would be better off telling people that you have no idea if Federer is capable of winning another Major or two.

This is because no matter how deeply involved you have been in the game, no matter all the past examples, no matter the comments made by former players and other assorted experts, you can never be certain that you have the right answer — although taking the easy way out and saying “I don’t know,” is a cop out, for sure.

Different people age differently for a variety of reasons. But in sport, ageing can be looked at from four angles, in the least.

There are sportsmen who have been also-rans for a long time, and who turn out to be also-walks with age. We seldom even care to find out much about them. They are the support cast with minimal attention paid to them even when they are doing their best.

Then there are those who are good — probably ranked in the top 10 for some time — who, with age, find themselves ranked in high three figures and slowly vanish from our sights.

Interesting categories

But the two most interesting categories worth our time are the well known Major winners. They basically age in two ways. In the first are the ones who fool themselves into believing that they can somehow magically recreate their best in their mid-30s and hang around for an opportunity that rarely comes their way.

The last group is the most delightfully spirit lifting. These are men and women who bravely, and with enormous skills, defy the athlete’s greatest enemy — time.

“I read in the Atlanta paper this week that 46-year-olds don’t win Masters. I kind of agreed. I got thinking. Hmmm. Done, thoroughly washed up. And I sizzled for a while. And I said to myself, I am not going to quit right now, playing the way I am playing. I have played too well too long to let shorter period golf be my last,’’ said Jack Nicklaus after winning his last and 18th Major at the Augusta Masters in 1986 at age 46.

While Federer, winner of 17 Grand Slam titles, might agree with the Golden Bear, he would also come to realise that he may not have too much time in which to win his own 18th.

Though he has never talked about quitting or even about pondering the question of retirement with any kind of seriousness, Djokovic has turned out to be his nemesis in recent times and the best chance that the Swiss maestro may have of adding to his impressive collection of Grand Slam silverware will come if and when the Serbian world champion loses early in a Major.

“Age is a question of mind over matter. If you don’t mind, it doesn’t matter,” wrote Mark Twain.

It is easy to say that confidently if you were a great writer; but athletes age at least three times as quickly — based on their performance, their speed and their reflexes — as do people in most other professions.

We have found out over the last two years that even in a game that is almost entirely mental, age does not let you off easily. This is precisely why Viswanathan Anand’s long experience playing world title matches mattered little when he twice lost to Magnus Carlsen, a Norwegian prodigy about half his age.

It is not just the bones and muscles that age; even the mind does. Years of accumulated wisdom might matter little when an energetic, supremely confident young man forces you to solve a seemingly unsolvable puzzle or two on the 64-square board.

As human lifespan grows longer and training methods, technology and expertise improve, you might expect to see older champions. But the same is true of young world beaters too as they take advantage of these advancements to attain peak performance time and again.

The legendary English cricketer Jack Hobbs was 46 years and 82 days old when he scored 142 for England in a Test match against Australia at Melbourne in March 1929. But the man nicknamed The Master is unlikely to ever turn in his grave as this is a record that might stand the test of time.

No matter all this, it cannot be said with certainty that Federer can never win another Grand Slam before he finally rests on his laurels. Ken Rosewell was 37 when he won the Australian Open in 1972, although in that era the only top players to compete in that Slam event were Australians.

Only a fortnight ago, Peyton Manning, one of the greatest quarterbacks in US football — NFL or grid iron football as the rest of the world calls it — won his second Super Bowl ring, and the first with the Denver Broncos — at age 39.

Tennis is much less demanding physically — especially if you can play with the graceful, unmatched effortlessness of a Federer.

I, for one, will not write off the 34-year-old Swiss. For I believe the moment the great man gets the feeling that he is no longer a serious contender at the Slams, he will pack up his bags for good.

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Writing the Roger Federer story

What all does the Age of Roger Federer encompass? Is it about him alone? In a career that has gone past his incredible rivalry with Rafael Nadal and, as we saw this week in the Australian Open, that now adds a distinct shine to Novak Djokovic’s current dominance, Federer has lifted the profile of his sport in ways we are yet to fully articulate. He is the greatest, and a significant measure of his greatness lies in pulling into a higher orbit tennis players who’d defeat him. Would Federer have been considered as exceptional had he been playing in another time? Definitely. Would Nadal’s failure to get his career back to its earlier trajectory been as heartbreaking if he had not been the other half, the Rafa-Roger world number one-two ranking for so long? Or would Djokovic be held in as much awe if he had the same winning record without having pulled past Federer and Nadal? Both unlikely.

Writing about Fed

However, writing about Federer can easily become a self-indulgent exercise, and perhaps we must await a memoir from him of the order of Andre Agassi’s Open to truly understand him. Till then, we have inadequate attempts like William Skidelsky’s Federer and Me: A Story of Obsession, a book so self-indulgently obsessive that it’s mesmerizing till you soon snap out of it, as you inevitably will.

It takes a writer of the calibre of Simon Barnes to put our collective obsessiveness about Federer, even in this latter part of his playing life, in perspective. He writes in A Book of Heroes: Or a Sporting Half-Century: “Even if someone were to come along and beat his record in terms of numbers, it is unlikely that they would do so by means of such beauty and artistry, such style. Federer really is the greatest of all time. It is not necessary to worship him as a god: but a certain amount of deference is — well, therapeutic.”

Perhaps the easier, make-do way to get a measure of him is, in fact, by examining him along with the competition — as the journalist L. Jon Wertheim did in his book, Strokes of Genius: Federer, Nadal, and the Greatest Match Ever Played. The match was, of course, the Wimbledon final of 2008, remembered as much for the tennis as for the way it changed the course of both careers. Nadal would go on that summer to displace Federer as world number one, and take the tennis singles gold at the Beijing Olympics.

But the book I find myself returning to after binge-watching sport is Here and Now. Paul Auster and J.M. Coetzee had written letters to each other between 2008 and 2011, clearly for eventual publication, discussing whatever was top of the mind for them at the particular moment. For readers of literary fiction, the book is obviously special. But it’s one that should be recommended to all sports fans, particularly those like me afflicted with low-grade guilt at spending all that time in front of the television set. Writes Coetzee: “Like you, I think that watching sport on television is mostly a waste of time. But there are moments that are not a waste of time, as would for example crop up now and again in the glory days of Roger Federer… I scrutinise such moments, revisiting them in memory — Federer playing a cross-court backhand volley, for instance. Is it truly, or only, the aesthetic, I ask myself, that brings such moments alive for me?… I have just seen something like the human ideal made visible.”
In response, Auster, ever ready to be persuaded by Coetzee on anything, writes: “As for the exaltation you talk about when watching Federer in his glory days, I am in total accord with you.”

But Auster had been encouraged down that sport-is-a-waste-of-time line earlier. Coetzee had spent most of a Sunday watching the third day of an Australia-South Africa Test match, “emotionally involved” in the game. And: “In order to watch the game I put aside the two or three books I am in the middle of reading.” Cricket, he explains to his American friend, has been played for centuries, and in all those matches over the years it was likely that the contest that particular day had been approximated in another match some time, somewhere. Whereas each good book is something new. So he asks Auster: “Does any of this sound familiar to you? Does it strike a chord you recognise? Is sport simply like sin: one disapproves of it but one yields because the flesh is weak?”

Of course it is not. But it a good standard to hold the great sportspersons against — that their exploits amount to something more than entertainment. Call it the Federer Standard.

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Djokovic survives Simon scare; reaches quarterfinals

Novak Djokovic’s grip on the Australian Open title looked shaky for a short spell on Sunday, but the World No. 1 finally shook off Gilles Simon in a four-and-a-half hour marathon to take his place in the quarterfinals.

Serena Williams, by contrast, booked a re-match of last year’s title decider against Maria Sharapova by sweeping into the quarterfinals without having lost a set, and Roger Federer progressed almost as comfortably to bring the day to a close.

The whiff of an upset hung around Melbourne Park for much of the day — Tomas Berdych, Agnieszka Radwanska and Carla Suarez Navarro all lost opening sets — but it was most potent in Djokovic’s five-setter against Simon.

Djokovic had eased into the fourth round without losing a set as he continued the dominant form that earned him 11 titles, including three of the four grand slams, last year.

Defensive baseliner Simon is a wily campaigner, however, and he elicited 100 unforced errors out of the reigning champion in his 6-3, 6-7(1), 6-4, 4-6, 6-3 defeat.

Hurtling around the arena on legs that have always looked too spindly to take the kind of punishment they regularly endure, the 31-year-old Frenchman absorbed Djokovic’s power and timed his shots to perfection to hurl it back at the Serbian.

Djokovic has not won five titles at Melbourne Park without being able to negotiate a scrap, however, and despite a string of fluffed drop shots he reasserted his authority in the final set to reach the last-eight for a 27th successive grand slam.

“I honestly didn’t expect to make this many unforced errors. In terms of a level that I’ve played, it’s the match to forget for me,” said Djokovic.

“When you’re playing someone like Simon… you’re trying to cut down on the length of the rallies, go for a winner or go for a dropshot. Sometimes you have a brain freeze, if I can call it that.”

Djokovic’s next opponent, Japan’s Kei Nishikori, must have enjoyed every last minute of the match as he rested up after a straightforward 6-4, 6-2, 6-4 victory over Jo-Wilfried Tsonga.

Nishikori was humiliated 6-1, 6-1 in his last meeting with Djokovic in November, and will be hoping to avenge that defeat and revive memories of his stunning upset of the Serbian in the semifinals of the 2014 U.S. Open.

“In London, he kind of destroyed me,” the seventh seed said. “I hope I can make some changes and try to play better. Yeah, I’m ready to beat him again.”

Williams lost her serve for the second time at the tournament in the opening game of her match, but that was just about all that went against the American in her brisk 6-2, 6-1 demolition of Margarita Gasparyan.

Sharapova was made to work much harder for her 7-5, 7-5 victory over teenager Belinda Bencic in the opening match of the day on the main showcourt.

The fifth seed’s reliance on her serve to get her out of trouble against the rising Swiss talent was at odds with perceptions of her game in recent years.

David Goffin has made great strides over the last couple of years, but could still not cope with 17-time grand slam champion Federer.

The 34-year-old Swiss got onto court late, but wasted little time in dissecting the Belgian 6-2, 6-1, 6-4 to set up a meeting with Berdych, who earlier came from behind to beat Roberto Bautista Agut 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, 1-6, 6-3.

“I’m pleased with how I played,” said Federer. “David normally gives me a hard time in practice, so I was surprised at how well I went.”

Radwanska and Suarez Navarro both had their nerves tested before being able to set up their quarterfinal date.

Radwanska was 5-2 down in her deciding set against Anna-Lena Friedsam, but the 21-year-old German was reduced to tears when her legs simply gave up on her, allowing the fourth seed to recover for a 6-7(6), 6-1, 7-5 victory.

Tenth seed Suarez Navarro rebounded from an opening-set battering to beat Daria Gavrilova 0-6, 6-3, 6-2 and end Australia’s interest in the women’s draw.

The most welcome recovery of the day was that of Ana Ivanovic’s coach and Andy Murray’s father-in-law, Nigel Sears.

The 58-year-old, who was taken to hospital on Saturday after collapsing in the stands in Rod Laver Arena, was discharged on Sunday and allowed to return home to Britain.

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Djokovic given third set fright by French wildcard

World number one Novak Djokovic gave French teenager Quentin Halys a free tennis lesson for about an hour before the wildcard showed how much he had learnt in the Serb's 6-1 6-2 7-6(3) Australian Open second round win on Wednesday.

Djokovic was at his clinically efficient best in the first two sets as he looked to be tactically three shots ahead of Halys and he opened up space on court at will while he romped to a 2-0 lead inside an hour.

The 19-year-old wildcard, ranked 167th in the world, then fought back in the third set, breaking the Serb for the first time and putting him under pressure before Djokovic ran away with the tie-break.

Djokovic, who is aiming for a record-equalling sixth Australian Open title, will next face either Italy's Andreas Seppi or American Denis Kudla in the third round.

Kvitova ousted

Twice Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova was sent tumbling out of the Australian Open in the second round by Daria Gavrilova, stunned 6-4 6-4 by the 21-year-old local.

The Czech sixth seed, a semi-finalist at Melbourne Park four years ago, made 35 unforced errors and was broken five times in the 89-minute contest, to the delight of the partisan crowd on Margaret Court Arena.

Kvitova rallied to save a match point and break back for 5-4 in the final set but Gavrilova claimed the victory when the world number seven went long with a forehand in the next game.

Moscow-born Gavrilova, who paired up with Nick Kyrgios to win the Hopman Cup for Australia at the start of the year, will play France's Kristina Mladenovic in her first trip to the third round at a grand slam.

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Serena Williams, Sharapova in same quarter at Australian Open

Defending champion Serena Williams and No. 5-ranked Maria Sharapova were drawn into the same section for the Australian Open on Friday, setting up a potential quarterfinal match featuring the 2015 finalists.

Six-time champion Williams has a tough draw starting in the opening round against Camila Giorgi of Italy, who finished 2015 at No. 34 and was the highest-ranked player who was not seeded for the season’s first major which begins Monday.

Williams, who just missed a calendar year Grand Slam last year when she lost in the U.S. Open semifinals, could also meet former No. 1-ranked Caroline Wozniacki in the fourth round at Melbourne Park.

Williams and Sharapova entered the tournament with injury concerns Williams had to pull out of the Hopman Cup team event in Perth due to left knee soreness, and Sharapova withdrew as defending champion from the season-opening Brisbane International because of soreness in her left forearm.

Both have been practicing at Melbourne Park, and Australian Open tournament director Craig Tiley on Friday said Williams and Sharapova were fit.

Second-seeded Simona Halep will open against a qualifier, while two-time champion and 14th seeded Victoria Azarenka, who won last week’s Brisbane International and appears free from injury for the first time in several years, will play Alison Van Uytvanck of Belgium.

“She’s got a bounce to her step,” Tiley said of Azarenka.

Novak Djokovic will open his title defense against Chung Hyeon of South Korea and, if results go with rankings, could meet No. 7 Kei Nishikori in the quarterfinals and No. 3 Roger Federer in the semis.

Federer, who has won four Australian titles among his 17 majors, opens against Nikoloz Basilashvili of Georgia, and possibly Alexandr Dolgopolov in the second and No. 27 Grigor Dimitrov in the third.

Federer won his last Australian title in 2010 and made four semifinals in a row before losing in the third round last year to Andreas Seppi.

No 2-ranked Andy Murray will open again Alexander Zverev of Germany and in the same half of the draw, 2014 champion Stan Wawrinka takes on Dmitry Tursonov.

Fifth-seeded Rafael Nadal, who could meet fourth-seeded Wawrinka in the quarterfinals, opens again fellow Spaniard and 2009 Australian Open semifinalist Fernando Verdasco.

The floater in that quarter of the draw is No. 13 Milos Raonic, who plays Lucas Pouille of France in the first round. Raonic beat Federer in the Brisbane International final last week.

Lleyton Hewitt, who will play his 20th and last Australian Open before retiring and has already been hired as the country’s Davis Cup captain, will play fellow Australian James Duckworth in the first round.

The closest Hewitt came to capturing his national title was when he lost the 2005 final to Marat Safin.

“It’s a dream first round for the event that Hewitt and Duckworth match-up,” Tiley said of the two players who needed wild cards to get into the main draw.

Another Australian, No. 16-seeded Bernard Tomic, will play Uzbekistan veteran Denis Istomin in the first round, and 29-seeded Nick Kyrgios l plays Pablo Carreno Busta of Spain.

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Nadal is truly greatest of current generation: Amritraj

Backing Rafael Nadal to come back strong next year, former Indian ace Vijay Amritraj on Sunday said the Spanish star is the greatest of the current generation and will continue to play unbelievable tennis as long as he stays healthy.

“Actually, nothing much (has happened to Nadal). He made the world finals in London which means he is the world’s best player ... As long as he is healthy he will play unbelievable tennis. He will come back extremely strongly next year, I think,” Amritraj told PTI in an exclusive interview on the sidelines of IIMBUE 2015 — IIMB Alumini Leadership Summit — in Bengaluru.

Amritraj said Nadal is ranked among the Top-5 players in the world as he has won fourteen Grand Slams.

“I don’t think you can pick anything from him. He is a great champion. He has won 14 Grand Slams. He is ranked among Top Five in the world, nothing has happened to him ... He is truly greatest of current generation,” he said.

Nadal’s performance has come under the scanner by experts around the world with critics arguing that the Spaniard’s graph is on the wane.

Nadal, who last won a Grand Slam title at Roland Garros 2014, did not win a major in 2015. The most shocking loss came when the ‘King of Clay Court’ was defeated by Novok Djokovic in French Open.

His other Grand Slam — US Open, Australian Open and Wimbledon — exits in 2015 all had major elements of surprise also.

Asked about the line-up for great contests next year, Amritraj said Djokovic is the front-runner for winning major titles. “If you look at 2016 line-up you have to keep Djokovic in the front row, and then everyone else follow. The (preferential line-up) after Djokovic will be Federer, Nadal, Andy Murray and Stan Wawrinka,” he said.

“Nobody has won grand slam except Djokovic last year. Only guy to beat him in the French final was Warwinka. So who are the nearest competitors? These two — Federer and Nadal. Similarly Murray and Wawrinka are there. There would be others who will come along who can cause upsets,” Amritraj added.

Asked about Murray’s prospects, Amritraj said there is less pressure on him after winning a couple of Grand Slams, Wimbledon and then guiding Great Britain to win Davis Cup Team Trophy for the first time since 1936.

“I think the Davis Cup win gave him incredible amount of confidence and inspired him to individually do better next year. He has won a couple of Grand Slams, and knows what it is to win Wimbledon. Earlier, he did not have them in his kitty — all those monkeys are off his back now. He can play loose and freer. I think there is less pressure on him,” he said.

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Djokovic beats Berdych to reach semis at ATP finals

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Novak Djokovic only needed a set. The Serb No. 1 rarely settles for less than two, though, especially against one of his favorite opponents.

Djokovic reached the semifinals of the ATP World Tour Finals by extending his dominance over Tomas Berdych, beating the Czech player 6-3, 7-5 on Thursday in their last round-robin match and stay on course for a fourth straight title.

Earlier, Roger Federer overcame a stubborn Kei Nishikori to finish the round-robin stage unbeaten and claim first place in the group.

Under the tournament’s tiebreaker rules, Djokovic would have advanced even if he lost in three sets, which would have left both players with a 1-2 record. That meant there was little left to play for after he broke for a 5-3 lead in the first and then served out the set.

Djokovic didn’t let up, though, breaking for 6-5 in the second and improving his career record against Berdych to 21-2. He has beaten the Czech five times in the last six years at the ATP finals.

That history might have given Djokovic an edge on the key points at the O2 Arena, he said.

“I know that because I’ve had many close matches with him, because I’ve won so many times against him, maybe there is this factor of a mental edge,” Djokovic said, “maybe an advantage in important moments, decisive moments where I’m able to stick around and stay tough and believe that I can actually win.”

“It’s a fact that he’s been playing better and he’s been raising his level ever since the U.S. Open,” Djokovic said of Nadal. “I know that, I’ve been watching. I know what is expecting me. We played so many times. I’m going to get ready for that one and hopefully I’ll be able to play at my best.”

In the early session, Federer struggled to put away Nishikori before winning 7-5, 4-6, 6-4 and sending the Japanese player home early.

Federer, playing with a weeklong stubble, faced more questions after the match about his beard than about the struggles with his serve that saw him broken five times. Wil it stay as long as he keeps winning?

“If it itches too much, I’ll take it off,” Federer said. “If my girls can’t stand it, I’ll take it off. If I look in the mirror and I don’t like it, I’ll take it off. Maybe I’ll think of Santa and keep it. It’s around the corner. I don’t know yet.”

As for his wife, Mirka, “she’s fine with it.”

“I mean, she’s OK, I guess,” he added. “I do take decisions by myself sometimes.”

Federer broke for a 3-1 lead in all three sets but Nishikori came back each time, taking advantage of some rare mishits by the Swiss star along the way. But Nishikori finally ran out of comebacks as Federer earned his sixth break of the match in the last game, clinching the win with a smash.

While Federer had already advanced to the semifinals, he never there was no let-up in the third set even as Nishikori kept finding ways of getting back into the match.

“It’s just another match, a really important one for me, to move on with a good feeling,” Federer said. “There’s (ranking) points on the line and prestige, wanting to beat Kei, winning at the O2. I want to do well here.”

Nadal’s a big threat again, says Federer and Djokovic

Rafa Nadal will be pose a significant grand slam threat again next year after showing signs of returning to his best, according to two of the Spaniard's greatest rivals.

Spaniard Nadal slumped to 10th in the world rankings this year after a crisis of confidence and form, but since a third-round defeat at the U.S. Open by Italian Fabio Fognini he has rediscovered his old spark.

So far this week at the ATP World Tour Finals he has beaten world number four Stanislas Wawrinka and number two Andy Murray, without dropping a set to reach the semi-finals with a match to spare, where he will face world number one Novak Djokovic.

Serbia’s Djokovic, who trails Nadal 23-22 but has won all three matches this year, says the 29-year-old is over his slide.

"You can feel that he's starting to get comfortable on the court, starting to play better,” Djokovic said.

“The couple of matches, first couple of matches he played here against Wawrinka and Murray showed that, showed that he feels more confident, shows that he's starting to miss less, serve efficiently, use his forehand much better.”

Seventeen-time major champion Roger Federer has suffered at the hands of Nadal more than any other player, losing 23 of their 34 contests, and fully expects the Mallorcan to continue his form into 2016, providing he stays fit.

“Maybe for his standard it's not the best season. What is he going to finish, top five? It's still a good season,” said the Swiss. “Everybody would take that except maybe a few players at this tournament. The rest would all love to be in his shoes.

“I think he's going to get stronger. With some time to practice and reassess his game, he's going to be tough to beat in Australia. I believe that.”

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Wawrinka knocks out Murray, Nadal still unbeaten

Britain’s Andy Murray can focus fully on next week’s Davis Cup assignment in Belgium after Stanislas Wawrinka sent him packing from the ATP World Tour Finals at the O2 Arena on Friday.

The concluding round-robin match at the year-ender had become a straight knockout between the two players after Rafael Nadal had already sealed top spot in Ilie Nastase Group, and Wawrinka looked the sharper as he won 7-6(4) 6-4.

Earlier, Nadal spent two hours and 36 minutes beating fellow Spaniard David Ferrer 6-7(2) 6-3 6-4 to make sure he went into Saturday's semifinal against world number one Novak Djokovic with a 100 per cent record so far this week.

Wawrinka will face Stan Smith Group winner Roger Federer, who like Nadal was unbeaten in group play.

Murray and Wawrinka were both guilty of numerous careless errors, Murray in a first-set tiebreak that he led 4-2.

His Swiss opponent then wobbled towards the end and nearly let slip a 5-2 lead, having to save two break points when he served for the match for a second time at 5-4.

World number two Murray, who smashed a frame in anger in the final game, said the proximity of next week's Davis Cup final on a claycourt in Ghent had not been a factor in his defeat.

“Way too many errors. Cheap ones, as well. Disappointing,” the 28-year-old, who fell at the group stage for the second year running, told reporters.

“I didn't find it difficult not thinking about the Davis Cup final, to be honest. Obviously the only positive for me this week is I've come away from it injury-free.

“Now I have a couple more days to get ready for Belgium.”

Murray was straight back on court afterwards, taking out his frustration in a knockup with coach Jonas Bjorkman on a deserted centre court as cleaners picked up litter in the stands.

With Nadal already in the semi-finals and Ferrer going home after two defeats, the clash of the Spaniards had no impact on the tournament but the packed arena was treated to the longest match of the tournament so far.

It looked as though Nadal might be in for an easy ride when he won 10 of the first 11 points, breaking Ferrer twice, but his 33-year-old opponent is renowned as one of the sport's best battlers and he hit back to win a tiebreak.

World number five Nadal, who had already beaten fourth-ranked Wawrinka and Murray, buckled down though and levelled the match before breaking the Ferrer serve in the final game of the contest.

“It should be like this,” Nadal, who has been transformed since a modest summer, told reporters.

“Doesn't matter if I was qualified. For me the main goal is to try to arrive in good shape next year. Today was an opportunity to play against another of the top eight players of the world.

“I think I competed well. I won a very tough match. I think a very good match in terms of quality moments.”

In the doubles, Ivan Dodig and world number one Marcelo Melo beat Marcin Matkowski and Nenad Zimonjic to set up a semifinal against Rohan Bopanna and Florin Mergea.

Second seeds Jean-Julien Rojer and Horia Tecau will face the Bryan twins after beating French duo Pierre-Hugues Herbert and Nicolas Mahut.

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