WIMBLEDON //An unfamiliar sensation crept into Roger Federer's mind yesterday and lodged there for more than two hours - not only that he might lose but that defeat might come in the first round of the event he treasures most. On the Centre Court where he has won six Wimbledon titles, Federer had to battle back from two sets down to beat Alejandro Falla, the 60th-ranked Colombian, in his opening game of 2010.
Did it occur to him at any time that he might lose? The world No 2 was asked this as soon as he sat down for his news conference after his narrow escape. "Yeah," Federer said. "A few times. It was a tough match; he played really well and I struggled early on. There was a big threat; I did get lucky today." Defeat on grass is not something Federer is familiar with, though he did make an exception by losing to Lleyton Hewitt in the Halle final in Germany eight days ago which was only his second loss on grass in seven years.
Long a crowd favourite at Wimbledon, Federer received a standing ovation just for walking from the dressing room to his courtside chair, before the fans settled into silence as he went down two sets and 0-40 at 4-4 in the third. "The points that led up to 0-40 were not very convincing for me," the Swiss said. "My whole game was in disarray." A fourth-set tiebreak brought out the Federer of old and spectators began chanting his name as he raced to a 7-1 win.
"For me it is not normal to be down two sets to love, especially at Wimbledon, but still I was able to find a way," said Federer after his 5-7, 4-6, 6-4, 7-6 (7-1), 6-0 win. "[Falla] played terrific and he made it hard for me." Perhaps the Colombian had learned from four previous straight-sets defeats by Federer, two of them within the last month, a reporter suggested. "He should have known that I was going to beat him," Federer said with a smile. "He forgot I beat him."
Falla had certainly not forgotten. "Everybody wants to play Federer, but three times in one month is a lot," he said. With Federer surviving Marin Cilic was instead the first big casualty in the men's draw. The 11th-seeded Croatian suffered a straight sets loss in the first round to Florian Mayer. Cilic, 21, reached the Australian Open semi-finals in January and claimed some notable victims during the clay court season but he won just one match at Queen's and succumbed to a disappointing 6-2, 6-4, 7-6 defeat against the world No 59. Mayer, who reached the quarter-finals on debut at Wimbledon in 2004 before injury halted his rise up the rankings, prevailed in slightly over two hours. He will play Mardy Fish for a place in the third round.
Andy Roddick, the fifth seed, showed his liking for grass when he scored a 6-3, 6-2, 6-2 win over fellow American Rajeev Ram. Meanwhile, it took Kim Clijsters a few minutes to familiarise herself again with the layout at Wimbledon after a four-year absence. Once on court though, the returning Belgian wasted little time in swatting aside Maria Elena Camerin, the Italian, 6-0, 6-3. Clijsters, twice a semi-finalist at the All England Club, found herself in the unfamiliar surroundings of Court Two for a low-key clash with the world No 120.
Nervous and excited, Clijsters, 27, was just happy to be playing competitively again at Wimbledon after returning to the tour last year after a maternity break. "I was nervous and excited to be out there again. I had to find my way to get there [Court Two] a little bit - luckily a security guard knew where he was going because I actually had no idea," she told a news conference after her match. Clijsters compared her feelings to that of a child returning for a new year at school. "Excitement, curious ... a lot of emotions," she said.
Those emotions were quickly harnessed as the Belgian produced a ruthless display that saw her heading back to the locker room after a little over an hour on court. Clijsters next faces Croatia's Karolina Sprem. Francesca Schiavone, the French Open champion, is out after being beaten by Vera Dushevina. Dushevina, ranked 47th in the world, beat the No 6 seed 6-7 (7-0), 7-5, 6-1. Schiavone, a quarter-finalist last year, committed 38 unforced errors and struggled with her serve in the final set.
Serbia's Jelena Jankovic survived a nervy first-round test against Laura Robson, the British teenage wildcard. Robson, the 2008 junior champion, pushed Jankovic hard before succumbing 6-3, 7-6. * Agencies
