Ernests Gulbis upset top-ranked Roger Federer 2-6, 6-1, 7-5 Tuesday in Rome. The 21-year-old Latvian needed seven match points to close out the match, double-faulting twice and missing a couple of sitters, but Gulbis, ranked No. 40 in the world, served huge and largely dictated play with his two-handed backhand.
The loss is Federer’s first in an opening round since he fell to Julien Benneteau at the Paris Indoors last fall. This year’s Australian Open champ has now failed to advance to the quarterfinals in his last three ATP tournaments—the first time he's done so since 2002. Federer lost to Marcos Baghdatis in the third round of Indian Wells, Tomas Berdych in the fourth round of Miami, and now Gulbis in the second round of Rome. Federer is scheduled to play Estoril next week, and Madrid the week after.
The loss to Gulbis assures that Federer and his primary rival, Rafael Nadal, will go at least a year since their last match, even if they meet in Madrid. In last year’s Madrid final, Federer scored his first win over Nadal on clay in two years, and then went on to win his first Roland Garros title.—M.C.