| Ferrer downs Del Potro in ATP tie |
LONDON David Ferrer dipped into his seemingly endless tank of stamina to beat Juan Martin del Potro on the second day of the ATP World Tour Finals on Tuesday.
Ferrer does not glide, rather hustles and bustles his way around the court, driving opponents to distraction with rock-like defences, punchy groundstrokes and speedy footwork.
Del Potro will testify to that after the towering Argentine lost a fascinating duel 6-3 3-6 6-4 in front of a packed audience at the 17,000 O2 Arena alongside the River Thames.
Fourth seed Ferrer, whose victory was the 73rd of a season that has delivered a career-best seven titles, will face Federer on Thursday trying to gain a first victory at the 14th attempt.
Hardly a cause for optimism in the Spanish camp but on current form few players, not even Federer, will relish a meeting with the player nicknamed the Iron Man.
At least the evening singles was a proper contest.
Ferrer fought off a break point against the towering Del Potro, runner-up here in 2009, before moving 3-1 ahead when the former US Open champion missed a backhand volley.
That proved enough for the Spaniard to take the opening set and he was still the dominant force at the start of the second set when he carved out four break points at 1-1, only for Del Potro to dig himself out of a gruelling service game.
The escape seemed to galvanise Del Potro who began clattering some heavy groundstrokes to gain a decisive break in the second set and set up a decider.
Ferrer stormed into a 4-1 lead only for Del Potro to drag himself right back into contention at 4-4.
Ferrer, who arrived on a 10-match winning streak after indoor titles in Valencia and Paris, refused to panic, however, and he rattled off the last eight points of the match to seal victory in two hours 16 minutes.
“I am very, very, very happy. It was a top match, and it was very difficult to play against Juan Martin,” Ferrer said.
“I don’t know the secret of my good form. It has been the best season of my career.”
The focus returns to Group A on Wednesday when US Open champion Andy Murray and world number one Novak Djokovic, who both won their opening matches, meet in a highly anticipated showdown.
Reuters
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