Roger Federer powers past Richard Gasquet to set up clash with British No 2 Cameron Norrie

Eight-time Wimbledon champion Roger Federer recovers from shaky start to power past Richard Gasquet and set up mouth-watering clash with British No 2 Cameron Norrie in round three

  • The Swiss ace had to save three break points in his opening service game
  • The 39-year-old pulled away after coming through a close first set on Thursday
  • Federer will now face Norrie, after the Brit reached the last 32 for the first time


They have another name for Richard Gasquet in France – ‘le petit Mozart’. For 16 years now Roger Federer has been taking an axe to his piano and boredom is yet to creep in.

Even in the final month of his thirties, this old lord of the grass can make an exhibition out of bullying good players.

Whether there’s enough spring in those legs for a 21st Slam remains to be seen, but the rust of his inactivity is peeling away. That much was told in the story of this 7-6, 6-1, 6-4 win, where his first set was scattered with shanks, and the next two were the sort of procession we used to know.

Roger Federer found his form on the lawns of SW19 to comfortably defeat Richard Gasquet

Certainly Gasquet is well acquainted with the drill. It was his 21st match against Federer and his 19th defeat, which gave alternative meaning to one of the post-match comments from the victor. ‘It is always a pleasure to play Richard,’ he said, and yeah, no kidding.

What we are yet to learn is how he stands up to a sustained challenge after playing only 10 matches in 19 months. 

He was spared a difficult finale in his first round when Adrian Mannarino was injured at two sets apiece, and Gasquet, at 35, offered no great resistance after losing the opening tiebreak on Centre Court.

The Swiss master pulled away after coming through a close first set on Thursday

The Swiss master pulled away after coming through a close first set on Thursday

Between the 10th game of that first set and the start of the third, Federer was occasionally brilliant, but thereafter he didn’t need to be as Gasquet began to lose heart. 

Had the Frenchman capitalised on the mass of Federer errors in the initial games of the match, particularly via three break points at 1-0, then it might have got interesting.

He didn’t and so Federer has the steam of two wins behind him, but seven rounds are an awfully big ask of old men.  

‘What I was able to do today gives you a lot of confidence,’ he said. ‘It was a nice match for me, good atmosphere for me, good weather. It was definitely one of the highlights of the year so far.’

He moves on to an appointment with the emerging British talent of Cameron Norrie, which falls in different circumstances to their only other meeting in late 2018.

Gasquet has now lost 19 of his 21 meetings with Federer but said it is always nice to play him

Gasquet has now lost 19 of his 21 meetings with Federer but said it is always nice to play him

That was a 6-1, 6-1 Federer win at the Hopman Cup in a year when the Swiss won the last of his Slams and Norrie was a dreamer barely inside the top 100. The former hasn’t won a Slam since; the latter has become a Wimbledon seed.

‘I see good improvements from him,’ said Federer. ‘I feel like everything in his game has gotten a little bit better, if it’s just the serve or the zip on the forehand, and the backhand has always been really clean. I think the confidence is growing and I feel like he has really worked on his game. This is what I would like to see every player do.

‘I’m really happy for him. I’m excited about the match. He’s a good guy, too.’