Federer Makes Statement With Opening Win; Hewitt Upset

Five-time US Open champion Roger Federer made a strong statement on his return to Arthur Ashe Stadium, posting a decisive 6-1, 6-4, 6-2 over debutant Brian Dabul of Argentine on Monday night.

With his first-round victory, the World No. 2 secured his place in the season-ending championships – the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals – for a ninth straight year, becoming the second player to qualify after World No. 1 Rafael Nadal.

Federer, who was playing a US Open debutant for the fifth time in the past six years, raced through the match in one hour and 26 minutes as he capitalised on five of 19 break points and fired 18 aces past his 5’7” opponent.

The most memorable moment of the night came late in the second set, when he delivered a between-the-legs shot that produced a winner – similar to the one in his semi-final match against Novak Djokovic last year – to earn a standing ovation from the crowd.

"I've only hit a few in my life and to do two on Centre Court in night sessions is amazing," he said after the match.

Federer saw his 40-match winning streak at Flushing Meadows come to an end last year with a five-set loss to Argentine Juan Martin del Potro in the final.

The 29-year-old Swiss, who won the Western & Southern Financial Group Masters title on the eve of the US Open, is looking to reach his seventh straight final at the year’s final Grand Slam.

He next faces German Andreas Beck, who defeated countryman Michael Berrer 7-6(3), 6-3, 6-1 to reach the second round for a third straight year.

Another past champion, 2001 winner and No. 32 seed Lleyton Hewitt, fought to extend his match to a fifth set but ultimately ran out of gas in a 6-3, 6-4, 5-7, 3-6, 6-1 loss to 109th-ranked Frenchman Paul-Henri Mathieu.

Hewitt, whose last six defeats at a major had come against a Top 10 player, had never lost in the first round of the US Open.