Federer, Soderling reach fourth round

New York -- Roger Federer and Robin Soderling each breezed to second-round victories Saturday to reach the fourth round of the U.S. Open.

No. 2 seed Federer had little trouble downing Frenchman Paul-Henri Mathieu 6-4, 6-3, 6-3 at windy Ashe Stadium, needing only 1 hour, 39 minutes for the victory.
The Swiss superstar tore off 13 aces and held serve throughout the match against Mathieu while improving his career U.S. Open record to 54-5 in seeking his sixth career New York title.

No. 5 seed Soderling, meanwhile, dispatched Dutchman Thiemo de Bakker 6-2, 6-3, 6-3, to reach the Sweet 16. Soderling was helped by 35 unforced de Bakker errors. The aggressive Swede broke de Bakker's serve six times.

Soderling will next face 21st-seeded Spaniard Albert Montanes, who defeated Kei Nishikori 6-2, 2-1 when the Japanese retired with a groin injury.

Elsewhere at Flushing Meadows Saturday, 17th-seeded Frenchman Gael Monfils notched a 7-6 (7-4), 6-7 (4-7), 6-2, 6-4 victory over Serbian Janko Tipsarevic, who was hampered by a hamstring injury.

Also, Richard Gasquet handled South African Kevin Anderson 6-4, 7-6 (7-3), 7-5 and will now face Monfils in an all-French Sweet 16 match.

Copyright 2010 United Press International, Inc. (UPI).

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