He Did It Again

David Nalbandian defeated Roger Federer 6-3, 7-6(3) for the second time in a row to advance to the quarterfinals of the BNP Paribas Masters in Paris.

This is the second time this year that Raja has lost back-to-back Masters Series matches to a player who hails from Argentina. But hey, the world No. 1 can cash his $1.5 bonus check for playing both Madrid and Paris and rest up to defend his Shanghai crown.

And he can take solace in knowing that Dahveed has no chance to qualify for the event with Andy Murray's win over Fabrice Santoro today.

Of course, the Argentine could still get in as an alternate and defeat King Arthur in the final as he did in 2005, so....



Simply put, Nalby beat Fed from everywhere on the court, making Fed hit awkward and defensive shots devoid of any magic. For most of the match, Fed's first serve kept him around, as well as a few tight moments from Nalby who failed to serve out the first set at 5-2 and the match at 5-4. But the dogged competitor recovered and closed out the match in straights to level his lifetime record against Fed at 8 wins apiece and making Fed eat the following words, uttered before the third-round match:

"I come here a big favorite and I'm on a great run again, having played only finals since many months. I think my level of play is very high at the moment. Even when I'm not playing my best I'm still very good."

"I prefer to play him in the second or third round. He shanks balls and doesn't serve that good. His whole entire game is not as sharp as later in the rounds."

Well, alrighty then.