Federer out to fix his Melbourne jinx

Wimbledon champion Roger Federer of Switzerland said today his lack of success at Melbourne Park should not be viewed as a detriment ahead o...

Wimbledon champion Roger Federer of Switzerland said today his lack of success at Melbourne Park should not be viewed as a detriment ahead of next weekend’s Davis Cup tennis semifinal against Australia.

Federer and the Swiss team arrived this week to acclimatise to conditions, time zones and to get some practice on Melbourne Park’s rebound ace surface. The semifinal is scheduled for September 19 to 21, with the winner to play the Spain-Argentina semifinal winner in the final in late November. Federer has not advanced past the fourth round of the Australian Open in four attempts, losing five-setters for the past two years against Tommy Haas and David Nalbandian.

“I have played a few ok matches here, but I never made that big breakthrough like I did in Wimbledon,” Federer said today. “I actually enjoy playing on rebound ace. I’ve missed my opportunities but I can play well on this surface.”

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Australia’s hopes are with Lleyton Hewitt, whose on-court demeanor is in direct contrast to the laid-back Federer. “He’s more noisy than I am, that’s for sure,” Federer said.

“We’re two different characters on the court but I show more emotion in davis cup than I do in other events. When you are playing Wimbledon, it’s fantastic, but you can reach the same emotion if you play well in Davis Cup.’’ The other Swiss singles player is likely to be Michael Kratochvil, who said Friday his team’s underdog status did not concern him. “We are outsiders, but we’ve been outsiders for the last two ties as well, in France and in Holland,” Kratochvil said.

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