Dimitrov shocks Federer in U.S. Open quarterfinals

Grigor Dimitrov beat Roger Federer for the first
time in eight matches. File photo by Paul Bauman

   For the second consecutive year, Roger Federer wilted before the semifinals of the U.S. Open.

   Last year, it was against 55th-ranked John Millman in extreme humidity in the fourth round.

   On Tuesday night, it was against 78th-ranked Grigor Dimitrov, who had been 0-7 against the Swiss star, in the quarterfinals.

   Dimitrov, ranked a career-high No. 3 as recently as November 2017, beat the third-seeded Federer 3-6, 6-4, 3-6, 6-4, 6-2 in Arthur Ashe Stadium in Flushing Meadows, N.Y.

   "Grigor was able to put me away," Federer, who was seeking a record-breaking sixth U.S. Open singles title, told reporters. "I fought with what I had."

   Federer, 38, took a rare medical timeout after the fourth set for pain in his upper back and neck. He put up little resistance in the fifth set and finished with 60 unforced errors to Dimitrov's 41.

   "He started slowing down a little bit," the 28-year-old Dimitrov, who's known as "Baby Fed" because of his one-handed backhand and artistry on the court, said in an on-court interview. "For sure, in the end, he was not 100 percent of himself."

   Dimitrov, who had lost six of his last seven matches entering the U.S. Open, will jump to at least No. 25 on Monday. In his third Grand Slam singles semifinal, he is scheduled to meet fifth-seeded Daniil Medvedev of Russia on Friday. The 6-foot-6 (1.98-meter) Medvedev, 23, beat 23rd-seeded Stan Wawrinka 7-6 (6), 3-6, 6-3, 6-1.

   In Medvedev's last three tournaments before the U.S. Open, he reached the finals in Washington, D.C., and Montreal and won his first Masters 1000 title in Cincinnati. 

   Wawrinka won his third and last Grand Slam singles in the 2016 U.S. Open but underwent two knee operations in 2017. 

   Medvedev and Dimitrov have split two career meetings, both in 2017.

   In the women's quarterfinals, eighth seed and six-time champion Serena Williams demolished 18th-seeded Wang Qiang of China 6-1, 6-0 in 44 minutes. That tied Simona Halep's third-round victory over Viktoria Kuzmova in Madrid for the shortest WTA match of the year, wtatennis.com reported.

   Williams, a 37-year-old part-time resident of Silicon Valley, is set to play fifth-seeded Elina Svitolina of Ukraine on Thursday. 

   Svitolina, who reached the San Jose quarterfinals as the top seed this summer, eliminated 16th-seeded Johanna Konta, the champion of the 2016 Bank of the West Classic at Stanford, 6-4, 6-4.
   Williams is 4-1 against the 24-year-old Svitolina, but they have not met since 2016.

   In junior singles:

   –Aidan Mayo, a 16-year-old product of Roseville in the Sacramento area, defeated Juan Bautista Torres of Argentina 6-4, 2-6, 6-2 in the second round.

   –Fifth-seeded Zheng Qinwen of China dominated Allura Zamarripa of Saint Helena in the Napa region 6-0, 6-2 in the second round.

   –Katie Volynets, 17, of Walnut Creek in the San Francisco Bay Area, outplayed Carole Monnet of France 6-1, 6-3 in the first round.

   In the first round of junior doubles:

   –Sixth-seeded Pablo Llamas Ruiz of Spain and Gauthier Onclin of Belgium beat Cash Hanzlik of Portland, Ore., and Mayo 6-2, 6-2.

   –Nicolas Alvarez Varona of Spain and Bautista Torres defeated Hugo Hashimoto of San Jose and Benjamin Kittay of Potomac, Md., 7-5, 7-5.

   –Top-seeded Alexa Noel of Summit, N.J., and Diane Parry of France beat India Houghton of Belvedere Tiburon in the San Francisco Bay Area and Carol Young Suh Lee of Northern Mariana Islands 6-1, 6-4.

   –Joanna Garland of Chinese Taipei and Mananchaya Sawangkaew of Thailand topped identical twins Allura and Maribella Zamarripa 7-5, 5-7 [10-2].