Tsonga routs Federer in Paris
There will be no Roger Federer in the semi-finals of the French Open for only the second time in nine years after Jo-Wilfried Tsonga produced a rip-roaring performance to beat the Swiss 7-5 6-3 6-3 in the quarter-finals.
Twelve months after blowing four match points at the same stage against Novak Djokovic, Tsonga made sure he had a much easier ride as he sparked wild jubilations on Chatrier Court by downing a player who is used to being a fan favourite no matter where he plays.
A backhand long from Federer on match point handed Tsonga a place in the last four at Roland Garros for the first time as Federer made a quick exit from the arena where he had held aloft the Musketeers' Cup in 2009.
Tsonga will next face fourth seed David Ferrer after he beat Tommy Robredo 6-2 6-1 6-1 in an-all Spanish clash on Suzanne Lenglen.
A shot fired straight into Federer's armpit demonstrated just how badly Tsonga wanted to win this match.
Federer was left wide-eyed and wincing when the ball bounced off his sweat-soaked shirt. But that momentary pain was nothing compared to the mental anguish the Swiss was feeling two games later.
"This is obviously a crushing loss," Federer said following a quick shirt change. "I struggled a little bit everywhere. Personally, I'm pretty sad about the match and the way I played.
"Jo-Willy played great today. He was better than me in all areas today. He returned better than I did, served better than I did. I struggled to find my rhythm.
"I'm just disappointed I couldn't put in a better match today."
Federer did not even have to look at the statistics to know just how badly his day had gone.
For the record, he produced zero aces, three double faults - including one on break point - 34 unforced errors and won only 58 percent of points on his first serve.
The numbers were certainly not adding up for a man who has lit up the world stage for a decade sweeping up a record 17 Grand Slam trophies in the process.
The Swiss counts Tsonga as one of his close friends on the tour and if he was looking for any favours on Tuesday, they were in short supply.
Tsonga goaded Federer with some aerial shots that the Swiss could only smash into the net. He tormented Federer by nullifying his serve-and-volley tactics with his whipped returns. And he finally delivered the killer shot-into-the-body blow which left Federer gasping.
"Missing smashes goes hand in hand with missing so many other things," said Federer, who was broken six times during the contest.
"Should have never gotten broken (after being up) 4-2 (in the first set). In hindsight now that's obviously a huge game for me, and things didn't go well from then on for me today."
While Federer was left to digest everything that went wrong for him on Tuesday, Tsonga rejoiced in setting up a last-four date with Ferrer without dropping a set.
A backhand long from Federer on match point allowed Tsonga to bury memories of the "tragic near miss" against Djokovic and ***** about the possibility of becoming the first Frenchman in the final since Henri Leconte in 1988.
"I played very well against a champion who won everything but today it was my turn," said a beaming Tsonga.
"Ferrer has not lost more than three games in a set so I hope I can come back here in three days and do something big."
No Frenchman has won a major since Yannick Noah prevailed in 1983 at Roland Garros.
The pressure in Paris has accounted for a succession of French hopes.
Amelie Mauresmo, a double Grand Slam champion, never went past the quarter-finals at Roland Garros.
Richard Gasquet, once dubbed the 'Mozart of tennis', again threw away a two-set lead in the fourth round against Stanislas Wawrinka on Monday.
On Sunday, Gilles Simon came close to beating Federer in the fourth round, but the 15th seed lost after opening a 2-1 set lead.
Tsonga suffers occasionally from nerves, squandering four match points before bowing out against Djokovic in their quarter-final clash at the French Open last year.
But he is also the last Frenchman to reach a Slam final and the last male French player with a Masters title to his name, having played in the 2008 Australian Open final and winning the Paris Bercy title the same year.
"Unfortunately, I can't really enjoy (my victory). I can't celebrate. Of course it's very good because I did that, but the tournament keeps going," Tsonga said.
"When you beat Federer in the semis, of course you think you can go a lot further."
Tsonga is also ready to listen to advice from Noah, the former champion turned singer who knows a thing or two about winning Roland Garros.
"Well, when he sings I dance. When he says something to me I listen to him. I listen carefully to what he has to say," said Tsonga, who believes he has matured since his 2008 breakthrough.
"I think lately I have been making the right choices. I made the choice of being alone. I decided to practise alone because it was a challenge for me to see how much I love tennis," he explained.
In April 2011, Tsonga parted company with long-time coach Eric Winogradsky, deciding to train alone, a decision he says helped him confirm he was playing tennis for himself.
"I was making sure I was not trying just to respond to other people's expectations and that I really wanted it myself. I realized that I just loved tennis, that it was something extraordinary, that I would really want to do that," he said.
"And after a while I realised it was tough staying alone because, of course, there is the game itself. But there are many other things you have to manage as a tennis player. You have to be on time for practising every day. You have to eat correctly. You have to ***** well. You need the life of a champion."
Tsonga hired Lleyton Hewitt's former coach Roger Rasheed before last year's Paris Masters in October 2012.
"It's always useful to have people around you who can help you doing that," he said.
There will be no Roger Federer in the semi-finals of the French Open for only the second time in nine years after Jo-Wilfried Tsonga produced a rip-roaring performance to beat the Swiss 7-5 6-3 6-3 in the quarter-finals.
Twelve months after blowing four match points at the same stage against Novak Djokovic, Tsonga made sure he had a much easier ride as he sparked wild jubilations on Chatrier Court by downing a player who is used to being a fan favourite no matter where he plays.
A backhand long from Federer on match point handed Tsonga a place in the last four at Roland Garros for the first time as Federer made a quick exit from the arena where he had held aloft the Musketeers' Cup in 2009.
Tsonga will next face fourth seed David Ferrer after he beat Tommy Robredo 6-2 6-1 6-1 in an-all Spanish clash on Suzanne Lenglen.
A shot fired straight into Federer's armpit demonstrated just how badly Tsonga wanted to win this match.
Federer was left wide-eyed and wincing when the ball bounced off his sweat-soaked shirt. But that momentary pain was nothing compared to the mental anguish the Swiss was feeling two games later.
"This is obviously a crushing loss," Federer said following a quick shirt change. "I struggled a little bit everywhere. Personally, I'm pretty sad about the match and the way I played.
"Jo-Willy played great today. He was better than me in all areas today. He returned better than I did, served better than I did. I struggled to find my rhythm.
"I'm just disappointed I couldn't put in a better match today."
Federer did not even have to look at the statistics to know just how badly his day had gone.
For the record, he produced zero aces, three double faults - including one on break point - 34 unforced errors and won only 58 percent of points on his first serve.
The numbers were certainly not adding up for a man who has lit up the world stage for a decade sweeping up a record 17 Grand Slam trophies in the process.
The Swiss counts Tsonga as one of his close friends on the tour and if he was looking for any favours on Tuesday, they were in short supply.
Tsonga goaded Federer with some aerial shots that the Swiss could only smash into the net. He tormented Federer by nullifying his serve-and-volley tactics with his whipped returns. And he finally delivered the killer shot-into-the-body blow which left Federer gasping.
"Missing smashes goes hand in hand with missing so many other things," said Federer, who was broken six times during the contest.
"Should have never gotten broken (after being up) 4-2 (in the first set). In hindsight now that's obviously a huge game for me, and things didn't go well from then on for me today."
While Federer was left to digest everything that went wrong for him on Tuesday, Tsonga rejoiced in setting up a last-four date with Ferrer without dropping a set.
A backhand long from Federer on match point allowed Tsonga to bury memories of the "tragic near miss" against Djokovic and ***** about the possibility of becoming the first Frenchman in the final since Henri Leconte in 1988.
"I played very well against a champion who won everything but today it was my turn," said a beaming Tsonga.
"Ferrer has not lost more than three games in a set so I hope I can come back here in three days and do something big."
No Frenchman has won a major since Yannick Noah prevailed in 1983 at Roland Garros.
The pressure in Paris has accounted for a succession of French hopes.
Amelie Mauresmo, a double Grand Slam champion, never went past the quarter-finals at Roland Garros.
Richard Gasquet, once dubbed the 'Mozart of tennis', again threw away a two-set lead in the fourth round against Stanislas Wawrinka on Monday.
On Sunday, Gilles Simon came close to beating Federer in the fourth round, but the 15th seed lost after opening a 2-1 set lead.
Tsonga suffers occasionally from nerves, squandering four match points before bowing out against Djokovic in their quarter-final clash at the French Open last year.
But he is also the last Frenchman to reach a Slam final and the last male French player with a Masters title to his name, having played in the 2008 Australian Open final and winning the Paris Bercy title the same year.
"Unfortunately, I can't really enjoy (my victory). I can't celebrate. Of course it's very good because I did that, but the tournament keeps going," Tsonga said.
"When you beat Federer in the semis, of course you think you can go a lot further."
Tsonga is also ready to listen to advice from Noah, the former champion turned singer who knows a thing or two about winning Roland Garros.
"Well, when he sings I dance. When he says something to me I listen to him. I listen carefully to what he has to say," said Tsonga, who believes he has matured since his 2008 breakthrough.
"I think lately I have been making the right choices. I made the choice of being alone. I decided to practise alone because it was a challenge for me to see how much I love tennis," he explained.
In April 2011, Tsonga parted company with long-time coach Eric Winogradsky, deciding to train alone, a decision he says helped him confirm he was playing tennis for himself.
"I was making sure I was not trying just to respond to other people's expectations and that I really wanted it myself. I realized that I just loved tennis, that it was something extraordinary, that I would really want to do that," he said.
"And after a while I realised it was tough staying alone because, of course, there is the game itself. But there are many other things you have to manage as a tennis player. You have to be on time for practising every day. You have to eat correctly. You have to ***** well. You need the life of a champion."
Tsonga hired Lleyton Hewitt's former coach Roger Rasheed before last year's Paris Masters in October 2012.
"It's always useful to have people around you who can help you doing that," he said.
