Australian Open 2012: Walkover Win Will Help Push Roger Federer to Finals

All of the men on Rodger Federer's side of the bracket must be rolling their eyes. The most notable of those is Rafael Nadal, who is on pace to meet Federer in the semi-finals. 

The reason is that Federer's second-round victory against Andreas Beck came without Federer having to do anything. According to Nick Mulvenney of Reuters, Beck's back was acting up and he did not want to risk his health this early in the season. 

It's not that Beck would have beaten Federer. But even a straight set, 6-0, 6-0, 6-0 win would cost Federer some energy. That's energy that he now has saved up for the later rounds—when the competition will be tough. 

At 30 years old, Federer needs all of the extra rest that he can get, especially when going through the grind of a Grand Slam. Look at the potential semi-final clash with Nadal, Federer will have a big edge. Nadal runs around a lot, so he uses a lot of energy even in matches that are won with one-sided scores. 

Now, Federer has what amounts to a bye week. Even though it's an early match, he's starting the race from a better place than Nadal or any of his potential opponents. 

As a result of this good fortune, Federer will make a run until at least the finals in Australia. There was no way that Federer wouldn't make the semi-finals anyway. This is easily enough of an advantage to push him from the semi-finals to the finals. 

It is not just stored energy that will push Federer to the finals; there's also a chain of events that will ease the road. 

In his third-round match against Ivo Karlovic, Federer will undeniably be the more rested player. So, whatever slim chance Karlovic had of pulling an upset just got a lot slimmer. Federer won't be heavily challenged in that match. 

When he faces the next opponent, Federer will have the same advantage because that opponent will have had to exert more energy in a win. It is a chain that will run all the way through to the end of the tournament. The only way it won't help Federer is if he plays a much better opponent. The only man who can fit that description is Novak Djokovic, and even that's a stretch. 

This match not even getting underway is going to provide a long-term benefit for Federer. Don't expect him to lose any time soon.

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