Crowd was filling up – not quite capacity and excited Pimms woman was trying to catch someone’s attention over the other side of the stadium. Yeah – good luck with that honey!
Good start by Andy – but then an early break against him – it was clear that Hajek was going to do his best to spoil the party...
It was a must hold game for Andy at 1-3 (which he did – phew!)
He had break points at 3-4 but it had to be said – Hajek was playing amazing! Drop shops wrong footing Andy and moving him all about the court and was juuuust staying that break ahead.
A decisive overrule by Carlos Ramos meant that Andy went on to get the break back.
He was settling down a lot more into the game – none of the really disturbing negative body language that we’d seen of late – sure maybe the odd roll-eyes at an UE – but much more in keeping with the context of the match.
A risky push at the net gave Andy break point (taken) and first set was his.
There was a good early break in the 2nd so while getting increasingly irritated by chatty woman who was now not watching the set at all, just talking to her mate, I was left to idly wonder if Andy’s red and white armbands were a subtle sign of support for England!
Hajek’s early intensity seemed to have left him as Andy took a double break.
The 2nd set went to Andy way more comfortably than the first – we were going to have none of the histrionics of the Fed game ... buoyed by a MTO for Hajek at the end of the 2nd.
The third set and I think it’s safe to say it was routine. A comfortable win after all the drama of the first day – but I think Andy (and Nadal) would take some comfort that they had easy runs into the next round.
I think it showed that Federer is vulnerable this year... and Nole.. well... you can never tell with him – he’s either going to play his gangly self into form or screw it up royally early on...
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