Roger Federer dominates men's tennis on all surfaces except clay.
That was evident again on Monday when the top-ranked player made 37 unforced errors before beating qualifier Novak Djokovic of Serbia-Montenegro 6-3, 2-6, 6-3 in the first round of the Monte Carlo Masters.
"I never really felt very good throughout the match," Federer said. "I hope that's going to come along in the next match."
Federer has won seven Grand Slam titles, all except the French Open, which is played on clay.
"I'm trying to figure out what's the best way for me to play, and try to get as many matches as possible on clay," Federer said. "The more I do that, the more sure I get about sliding on clay, the points, how they're being played and everything."
The Swiss player is 29-1 this and has won four of five title matches. He has reached 11 straight finals and he's looking to match John McEnroe's 22-year-old record with an appearance in the final at Monte Carlo. He will next face Alberto Martin of Spain, who beat Ivo Karlovic of Croatia 6-4, 7-6 (3).
Against the 18-year-old Djokovic, Federer dropped serve twice in the second set and struggled to find his form.
"I was the guy making all the errors and he was not," Federer said. "He was playing a few good shots. I had a few sloppy points here and there. He made me doubt."
Federer, who made his debut at Monte Carlo with a first-round exit in 1999, has won the last two Masters titles -- beating James Blake at Indian Wells, California, and Ivan Ljubicic at Key Biscayne, Florida. His only loss this year was to Rafael Nadal at Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
"He's the one of the best players ever, and you know that before you go on court," Djokovic said. "But he's not an alien. I'm disappointed because I had a chance to win today. I had the match under control."
Six other seeded players advanced on Monday: No. 3 David Nalbandian of Argentina, No. 7 Gaston Gaudio of Argentina, No. 9 Nicolas Kiefer of Germany, No. 10 Radek Stepanek of the Czech Republic, No. 11 Juan Carlos Ferrero of Spain and No. 15 Tommy Robredo of Spain.
Nalbandian topped Xavier Malisse of Belgium 6-4, 6-4, and will next face Andreas Seppi of Italy. Seppi downed Davide Sanguinetti 2-6, 6-1, 6-4. Gaudio, the 2004 French Open champion, eliminated Tim Henman of Britain 6-1, 6-3, and Kiefer beat Max Mirnyi of Belarus 6-4, 4-6, 7-6 (2).
No. 14 Jarkko Nieminen of Finland was the only seeded player to lose, falling to Kristof Vliegen of Belgium 1-6, 6-4, 7-6 (5).
RSS