New York: Top seed and five-times champion Roger Federer withstood an inspired challenge from Simon Greul before defeated the pesky journeyman 6-3, 7-5, 7-5 in the second round of the US Open.
The 28-year-old Greul squandered two set points in the second set and a 3-0 lead in the third, eventually succumbing to Federer's punishing groundstrokes.
Federer had the decisive third-set break against the German in the 11th game to take a 6-5 lead. Greul wasted yet another break point on Federer's serve before the Swiss closed out the match with his eighth ace.
"I saw him play a couple of times, he played really, really well," Federer said in a courtside interview. "I knew I could be in for a battle. I thought the level was really high. There was a lot of intensity."
Federer's victory set up a third-round affair against 2001 champion Lleyton Hewitt, whom he has beaten 13 straight times.
Bureau Report
First Published: Thursday, September 03, 2009, 08:55