So far there have been twelve duels between Roger Federer and Philipp Kohlschreiber – all of which have been won by the Swiss. On Thursday evening, Federer’s main focus will be on top of the world rankings.
No, even Roger Federer is not free from thoughts that stand in the way of a possible success on the tennis court. After the finals at the Australian Open, for example, the Swiss confessed that he would have imagined far too early scenarios of how he would react against Marin Cilic after the finals. Victory and defeat.
After his sovereign first-round victory in Rotterdam against Ruben Bemelmans, for whom Federer only needed 47 minutes, the runners-up in the world ranking list immediately urged caution:”At some point the nervousness would probably come, after all, for Federer it is about climbing back to the top of the charts with his entry into the semi-finals of the ATP World Tour 500 tournament. The next opponent is Philipp Kohlschreiber (from 19:30 in our live ticker) today, against whom Federer has a flawless record: Twelve matches, twelve victories.
Nevertheless, Federer warned against the fact that the longstanding German number one was often close to a success against him. Especially in Halle/Westphalia 2015 on grass. At that time, Kohlschreiber gave a lead in the tiebreak of the decisive set, Federer did not forget that.
Most recently, the two exceptional players were facing each other at the US Open 2017. Actually under good omens for the German: He had played his way through quite easily in the early rounds, while Federer had to play against Mikahil Youzhny and Frances Tiafoe in the fifth set. In the end, however, it was the Maestro again who won in three sets at the Arthur Ashe Stadium.
The season 2018 didn’t start well for the Augsburg-born player: Kohlschreiber didn’t play well at the Australian Open and lost to Japanese Yoshihito Nishioka in round one. The week before, there was nothing to be gained against Danill Medvedev in Sydney. After all: Kohlschreiber’s victory in the tiebreak thriller against Karen Khachanov in Rotterdam’s first match win of the season in round one.
Federer is completely different: In addition to his seven successes at the Australian Open, the 36-year-old didn’t let anything burn at the Hopman Cup, his opponent’s performance against Bemelmans was also marked by his opponent’s weakness. The mutual appreciation between Federer and Kohlschreiber is great – and the joint training sessions for all those who have the opportunity to attend them are always a treat for tennis fans.
Here the single panel in Rotterdam