After beating Uzbekistan’s Denis Istomin in straight sets in the first round of the Australian Open, Swiss Roger Federer takes on Briton Dan Evans in one of the most interesting matches of the round of 32.
While Federer, the clear favorite, is looking for his seventh Australian Open title and third in a row; Evans is just getting back to the tour after serving a one-year suspension for testing positive for cocaine.
Before the ban, Evans was playing some of the best tennis of his career and was ranked 41st in the world, a career high. Due to the ban he’s currently ranked 189th in the world, but he certainly has proved that his tennis is a lot better than that. If he returns to the level shown before his ban, he could be back among the top 50 players of the world in no time.
He’s on the right track as he already defeated Japanese Tatsuma Ito in straight sets in the round of 64. It’s worth noting that due to his rank Evans had to play three qualifying matches to get his ticket to the tournament so the fatigue factor could also play a role in this contest.
Evans is the underdog and he has absolutely nothing to lose in this battle against Federer who is showing great form. So far this year Federer has won all the five tennis matches he’s played and has yet to drop a set.
Evans will need to be at his very best to even challenge Federer as the Swiss player is clearly the far more talented player of the two. Evans can be a tricky opponent at times, but against a player as experienced and skilled as Federer that may be of little use.
Evans has a great single backhand and is good with baseline rallies so the game may not be a pushover for the 37-year-old Swiss, but he’s likely to win three sets to none.
Evans has yet to win a set against Federer as he lost in straight sets (6-4, 6-2 and 6-2) in the round of 32 of the 2016 Wimbledon Championships.
If Evans plays his very best tennis, he could at least win a set in this matchup, but don’t expect him to win and advance past the Swiss who will try to not spend too much energy in this contest and move to the next round.
