11 November,2014 07:45 AM IST | | AFP
Switzerland's Stanislas Wawrinka and Roger Federer ease past Tomas Berdych and Milos Raonic respectively in opening encounters at prestigious season-ending tournament
Stan Wawrinka celebrates after defeating Tomas Berdych at the ATP World Tour Finals tennis held at the O2 Arena yesterday and Roger Federer
London: Switzerland's Stan Wawrinka and Roger Federer opened their ATP Tour Finals campaign in scintillating style by beating Tomas Berdych and Milos Raonic respectively yesterday.
Stan Wawrinka celebrates after defeating Tomas Berdych at the ATP World Tour Finals tennis held at the O2 Arena yesterday and Roger Federer. Pics/Getty Images
While Wawrinka demolished Berdych 6-1, 6-1, Federer defeated Milos Raonic 6-1, 7-6 (7/0) at the prestigious event held at London's O2 Arena.
Wawrinka, the reigning Australian Open champion, had been in poor form heading into the tournament, but the World No 4 was back in the groove against the Czech as he took only 58 minutes to wrap up his Group A opener.
The 29-year-old hit 16 winners to only four from Berdych, while the Czech's 20 unforced errors were also a large part of his undoing.
Wawrinka made it to the semi-finals on his Tour Finals debut last year and, on this evidence, will fancy his chances of progressing from a group that also includes World No 1 Novak Djokovic and US Open champion Marin Cilic.
It was another dispiriting Tour Finals start for Berdych, who had lost all four of his previous opening matches at the eight-man tournament.
Federer's flourish
Federer, who last won the prestigious season-ending event in 2011, looked in the mood to add another title to his collection on the evidence of a powerful performance, featuring 24 winners, that avenged his loss to Raonic in the Paris Masters quarter-finals last month.
Raonic, 23, is making his Tour Finals debut as the first player born in the 1990s to compete in the event after a breakthrough year that included a run to the Wimbledon semi-finals.
But at 33, Federer has been in age-defying form this year and he arrived as the oldest player to qualify for the tournament in his record 13th consecutive appearance.
