rogerfederer.com - First day against the Czech Republic: 1-1

First day against the Czech Republic: 1-1

Roger defeated Radek Stepanek 6-3, 6-2, 6-7 (4), 7-6 (5) on the first day of the Davis Cup encounter in Prague today. The Swiss team-leader broke Stepanek for a 4-2 lead in the first set. He continued his dominance in the second, breaking for a 3-1 lead and finishing the set with a love game. Stepanek double-faulted to give his opponent a 2-1 lead in the third set. But he evened it up at 5-5, converting his third break point in the game. Cheered by an enthusiastic crowd of some 14,000, Stepanek quickly built a 4-1 lead in the ensuing tiebreaker and held on to win. Stepanek fought off three match points against his serve in the fourth, before sending the match into another tiebreaker. This time, Roger took a 4-2 lead and converted his seventh match point when Stepanek netted a backhand return. "It was a very tough match in the end, but it did not look it at the beginning," Roger said, adding he had not played a three-hour long match in a long time. "I hope we can finish off on Saturday. I hope not to play on Sunday," he said.

Stanislas Wawrinka played the second match of the day against Tomas Berdych, losing 6-7, 4-6, 5-7.