Berdych through to the US Open QFs following a 3-Set Victory over Almagro

6th seed Tomas Berdych and 11th seed Nicolas Almagro were no strangers to playing each other when they stepped onto Louis Armstrong Stadium today to compete for a place in the quarterfinals.  The pair have already played 4 times this year, including in the 4th round of the Australian Open.  On that occasion, Berdych was the victor.  However, Almagro would get his revenge by defeating the 6’5” Czech in straight sets at Indian Wells just a few months later.

Today, both players started out rock solid on their first serve. Berdych fired 10 aces in just the first set, winning 23 of 25 first serve points.  Almagro was also impressive, hitting 4 aces and winning 88% of his first serve points.  As a consequence, the pair were forced into a tiebreak for the first set.  Berdych gained the early advantage and came up with the 7-4 victory.

Perhaps disappointed with his tiebreak performance, Almagro began to deflate as the match progressed.  Visibly frustrated with himself, the Spaniard was looking to make it to his first grand slam quarterfinal.  Berdych, however, would not give him that opportunity.   After crashing out of Wimbledon in the 1st round, the Czech struck 15 forehand winners along with 17 aces in the match en route to defeating Almagro in straight sets and earning a spot in his first ever US Open quarterfinal.  The final score was 7-6 (7-4), 6-4, 6-1.

Berdych will play world no. 1 Roger Federer in the quarterfinals.  Federer earned a walkover earlier today after Mardy Fish withdrew from the tournament.