Roger Federer will look to continue his serene progress at the 2012 Australian Open when he takes on Germany's Andreas Beck on Wednesday.
Federer's preparations for the Aussie Open have been marred by a back injury which meant he was unable to practise at full intensity until a few days before the tournament. And for the best part of a set of his first round match, fans on Rod Laver Arena could have been forgiven for wondering if they were about to witness a seismic upset.
Federer looked tentative and his Russian adversary Alex Kudryavtsev was swinging from the hip at every ball and finding the lines. The qualifier was having the time of his life until Federer decided enough was enough, moved through the gears and ultimately breezed through 7-5, 6-2, 6-2.
“It was just tough against a guy who hits big and flat from both sides and takes a lot of chances,” Federer said afterwards. “I really tried to put in an effort to every point play as hard as I could first to see how the back felt to try to get into it, hopefully win, and then see how I feel. I'm sure I'll be fine.”
Beck slugged his way past France's Eric Prodon 6-4, 6-2, 4-6, 7-5 to complete a good day for German players. However the world number 93 is unlikely to stand too much chance. He played Federer at the US Open a couple of years ago and it was pretty routine for the Swiss - 6-3, 6-4, 6-3.
