Thursday, June 11, 2009

Federer pulls out of Halle




Top seed Roger Federer has withdrawn from this week's Gerry Weber Open in Halle.
The world number two claimed his first French Open crown on Sunday after beating Robin Soderling in straight sets.
And Federer, who has won five times in Halle, claims that after such an emotional victory he is not in a position to play again so soon.
"I am sorry to announce that I have decided to withdraw from this week's Gerry Weber Open in Halle, Germany," Federer said in a message on his official website, www.rogerfederer.com.
"I sincerely apologise to the tournament organisers, my competitors, and my fans in Germany.
"I only hope they will understand that I still feel emotionally overwhelmed
and exhausted by the incredible events of the past few days.
"It is hard for me to admit, but I simply cannot imagine giving my best effort in another tournament right away and I don't want to risk injury if I am not 100% prepared. I need to rest and recuperate."
Federer was due to play Israeli qualifier Harel Levy in the first round.
In today's play, second seed Novak Djokovic bounced back from his shock third-round defeat to Philipp Kohlschreiber at Roland Garros by beating Simone Bolelli 7-5 6-2.
The Serbian converted just three of his 10 break points, but it was still more than enough to advance to the second round.
Third seed Fernando Verdasco is out, though, after he was sent packing by Philipp Petzschner. The Spaniard looked on track for a routine when he took the first set, but Petzschner fought back to progress 3-6 7-6 (7/5) 6-4.
There were no such problems for Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, the fourth seed, who defeated Fabrice Santoro 7-5 6-2.
Jurgen Melzer, seeded seven, was a 1-6 6-3 6-2 winner over Arnaud Clement.
There were also first-round wins for Olivier Rochus, who did not drop a game against Fernando Vicente, Andreas Beck, Nicolas Kiefer, Mischa Zverev and Kohlschreiber.

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