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Tomic vs Federer: Australian Open 2013 live scores, blog

Roar Guru
19th January, 2013
Tomic vs Federer: Australian Open 2013 live scores, blog
Bernard Tomic takes on Lucas Pouille in the fourth round at Wimbledon. (AAP)
Roar Guru
19th January, 2013
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6110 Reads

Bernard Tomic remains undefeated this year but he now measures himself against the one and only Roger Federer in the third round of the 2013 Australian Open. Join us for live scores and commentary from 7:00pm AEDT.

After scrapping to victory against Daniel Brands in the second round, Tomic has earned another shot against Federer and will be desperate to prove he indeed belongs in the elite of men’s tennis.

The Australian met Federer last year in the Australian Open fourth round, but was outplayed in a 6-4, 6-2, 6-2 defeat.

Federer then outclassed Tomic yet again in last year’s Cincinnati Masters, so the Swiss Maestro certainly has the Australian’s measure thus far.

Tomic however believes he is well placed to finally defeat the 17 time Grand Slam winner on Rod Laver Arena tonight given his recent strong performances.

The former Wimbledon quarter-finalist is on a ten match winning streak, with his latest victory coming against Brands of Germany.

Despite outlasting the German in four sets on Thursday, Tomic really needs to play on the front foot tonight if he is any hope of matching Federer.

Prediction
At 31 years of age, Federer’s shot making remains as clinical and precise as ever, as evidenced by his straight sets victory over Nikolay Davydenko in the second round.

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The Swiss superstar continues to astound audiences with his forehand and backhand shots, and moves around the court with a grace that is unrivalled on the ATP tour.

Add the fact that Federer almost never loses in the early rounds of a Grand Slam and it is easy to see why Tomic has his work cut out tonight.

Tomic is undoubtedly the biggest rising star on the ATP tour but his reactive play against Brands will prove his downfall against Federer.

Federer is a master of putting away short balls with his remarkable forehand and is also well adept to dealing with Tomic’s slices.

The 20 year old must pounce on anything short offered by Federer tonight and would do well to target his backhand, given that this is the side that will most likely break down when the Swiss maestro is under pressure.

Although he hits a lot of winners, Federer also produces a lot of unforced errors given his highly offensive game, so Tomic must make sure his groundstrokes are hit deep. This will allow him to keep Federer playing from the back of the court.

If he can do this, Tomic will force Federer from his comfort zone, and this in turn may lead to a high quantity of unforced errors from Federer’s racquet.

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Anything passive from Tomic however will see Federer offer the Australian another tennis lesson en route to a comprehensive win.

Given the present form of both players, Tomic should be more competitive than last year’s outing, but Federer at the moment still possesses too much class and talent for the Australian to handle and should win in three competitive sets.

Federer in straight sets.

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