NEW YORK—Roger Federer knows showmanship. Fans flock to his matches to witness his excellence and artistry, and most of the time he obliges. Today, the five-time U.S. Open champ was plenty good, but he mostly left the canvas at home. He had no use for it. After a patchy first-round win where he at times appeared uninterested, Federer stuck to the basics—big serve, big forehand—and cruised 6-3, 6-2, 6-2 in an hour and 17 minutes over an outclassed Dudi Sela. It was Federer’s 225th career Grand Slam win, moving him into sole possession of second-place behind only Jimmy Connors (233).
Federer’s achievements often draw comparisons to Pete Sampras, and the first set looked straight out of the Sampras playbook: Secure an early break, don’t exert too much energy on subsequent return games, and dominate on serve. (Thank you very much, coach Annacone). There was a slight breeze on Ashe and Federer mishit some simple ground strokes early on. He was more impatient than usual, but it was clear he wasn’t threatened by Sela’s game, which lacks a discernible weapon.
The generously-listed 5'9" Israeli is a scrappy retriever who at quick glance, with his hat pulled down just over his eyes, resembles golfer Sergio Garcia. Or, thanks to his small stature, could be mistaken for a D-III college player. But Sela is clearly professional-grade. He came back from two sets down in the first round against Thomaz Bellucci and, given his journeyman status, has a respectable 3-7 career record against Top 10 players. Unfortunately, one of those losses was an even harsher beating at Federer’s hands at the 2005 French Open (6-1, 6-4, 6-0).
Ironically, Bellucci would have likely been a much tougher out for Federer. The lanky Brazilian lefty has a tricky serve and huge topspin forehand (a nearly-broke man’s Nadal). But styles make fights, and Federer has little trouble handling light-hitting counterpunchers. Forget not facing a break point against Sela, Federer lost just eight total points in 13 service games, numbers that would make even Sampras blush. Perhaps he was sapped from his first-round comeback, or perhaps he was overwhelmed playing Federer on Ashe, but in the middle of the second set there didn’t seem much fight left in Sela. Serving at 2-4, 15-30, Sela opted for a highly unusual serve-and-volley. The tactic worked, but only because Federer botched a routine passing shot. Sela still dropped serve for a double-break and the rout was officially on.
Things will get decidedly more interesting for Federer in the third round, where he will face the winner of the Marin Cilic-Bernard Tomic match. With the elevated competition, Federer won’t be able to cherry-pick which return games he applies himself. Who knows, it may even encourage him to bring along his canvas.
—Jon Levey