Blake to play Federer
American James Blake has won his fourth round match against Croatian Marin Cilic to advance into his first ever quarter-final at the Australian Open.
Blake took the match in straight sets 6-3 6-4 6-4 in a packed Margaret Court Arena in an hour and 40 minutes ending the Croat’s dream run at the tournament which has seen him eliminate last year’s runner-up Fernando Gonzalez and No.27 seed Nicolas Almagro.
Blake’s strong ground strokes and his ability to produce winners on the run helped him to victory.
The longer rallies tended to go Blake’s way as both players played defensively waiting for the other to make the error. Cilic was the one who usually obliged in these cases and overall produced 34 unforced errors to Blake’s 17.
Blake produced some good passing shots and was more successful at the net than Cilic although Cilic tended to approach more. Despite losing, Cilic produced more winners and aces than Blake and had a faster average serve speed than the American.
Blake will play world No.1 Roger Federer in the quarter-finals after Federer defeated Czech play Tomas Berdych in straight sets on centre court.
AO
