2009 French Open Day 9

One day after the tennis world was shocked by the upset loss of number 1 seed Rafael Nadal, the number 2 player in the world got all he could handle from  an aging Tommy Haas.  Roger Federer, whose only losses in the last 4 French Opens have come at the hands of Nadal, found himself down 2 sets to 0 in the best of 5 series. Unseeded Haas, 31 years old, played one of the best matches of his life only to fall just short. After winning the first 2 sets, Haas was beaten easily by Federer for the next 2.  The 5th and final set went to Federer, who showed why he is considered one of the greatest of all time.  Winning the French Open would tie Federer with Pete Sampras for the most Grand Slam victories ever, as well as giving him a career Grand Slam, one of only 6 men to do so.

In other action, the last American standing, Andy Roddick, lost in straight sets to Frenchman Gael Monfils.  Roddick had his career best finish at Roland Garros.  Monfils will play Federer in the quarterfinal round.  Other winners on the day were Juan Martin Del Potro and Tommy Robredo.

In women’s action, number 5 seed Jelena Jankovic was upset by unseeded Sorana Cirstea of Romania. Cirstea was steady throughout the match, showing no signs of nerves, keeping the pressure on Jankovic.  Jankovic was clearly demoralized by the play of Cirstea, calling for the umpire to rule on shot after shot near the lines. Cirstea was steady, however, and continued to outplay Jankovic at her own style of play.

This is Cirstea’s first appearance in the quarterfinals round at a Grand Slam event.

Other winners included Serena Williams, Samantha Stosur, and Svetlana Kuznetsova.