Western and Southern Open 2015: Friday Tennis Scores, Results, Latest Schedule
The top names in tennis were in action on Friday, as the quarterfinals got underway at the Western and Southern Open.
Below, we'll break down the day's results and recap the action. ProTennisLive.com also has an updated schedule for Saturday's semifinal action.
Men's Results
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| N. Djokovic (1) | 6 | 6 | |
| S. Wawrinka (5) | 4 | 1 | |
| T. Berdych (6) | 4 | 2 | |
| A. Dolgopolov | 6 | 6 | |
| A. Murray (3) | 4 | 6 | 6 |
| R. Gasquet (12) | 6 | 1 | 4 |
| R. Federer (2) | 6 | 6 | |
| F. Lopez | 3 | 4 |
The Western and Southern Open semifinals will feature three familiar faces. Alexandr Dolgopolov decided to crash the party, too.
He'll be joining No. 1 Novak Djokovic, No. 2 Roger Federer and No. 3 Andy Murray after knocking off No. 6 Tomas Berdych on Friday. His reward for reaching the semifinals is a matchup against Djokovic, however.
Dolgopolov spoke about his victory over Berdych and his upcoming contest against Djokovic on Friday evening.
Beating Djokovic, the top player in the world at the moment, is a long shot at best. The Djoker wasn't terribly bothered by Stan Wawrinka, knocking him out in straight sets and looking incredibly convincing in the process.
It's hard to imagine he won't be in the final.
Who he faces is another story entirely, however, as Federer and Murray will clash in Saturday's premier matchup. Federer was able to get past Feliciano Lopez in straight sets, though No. 12 Richard Gasquet gave Murray some problems, winning the first set before Murray won the next two.
Murray vs. Federer should be fun. Federer leads the all-time series, 13-11, and has beaten Murray in four straight matches, including this year's Wimbledon semifinals. Murray, on the other hand, is coming off capturing a Rogers Cup title after beating Djokovic in an epic final.
Women's Results
| S. Williams (1) | 3 | 6 | 6 |
| A. Ivanovic (6) | 6 | 4 | 2 |
| L. Safarova (7) | 4 | 6 | 0 |
| E. Svitolina (14) | 6 | 2 | 6 |
| J. Jankovic | 6 | 6 | |
| A. Schmiedlova | 4 | 2 | |
| S. Halep (3) | |||
| A. Pavlyuchenkova |
No. 1 Serena Williams was given a scare on Friday. She recovered, as she always seems to do, knocking off No. 6 Ana Ivanovic after dropping the first set.
Williams readily admitted Ivanovic pushed her to the limit, per the WTA on Twitter:
But few players this year have been able to push Williams past her limit, as ESPN Stats & Info shared:
Before Williams can start thinking about the U.S. Open, however, she'll have to get past Elina Svitolina in the semifinals. She leads the all-time series, 2-0, beating Svitolina in this year's Australian Open.
Williams will be the prohibitive favorite, though her shaky performance against Ivanovic on Friday suggests that the weight of history is indeed wearing on her mind. Williams will of course be chasing the calendar Grand Slam at the U.S. Open, and it would appear the pressure is bearing down on her.
With Williams, of course, the tendency is to assume something is bothering her if she isn't completely dominant. Ivanovic played well on Friday and is an excellent player, so nothing should be taken away from her. But it's become pretty obvious at points in this tournament that Williams is having a difficult time not looking ahead to New York.
It hasn't stopped her from advancing to this point, though. Svitolina will try to stand in her way, however futile the attempt may be.
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