NEW YORK: Five-time champion Roger Federer breezed through sweltering conditions at the US Open yesterday but the crushing heat and humidity took the number of first-round retirements to a record nine.
Second-seeded Federer had little trouble in seeing off Argentina’s world number 34 Leonardo Mayer 6-1, 6-2, 6-2 in just 77 minutes on Arthur Ashe Stadium.
The 34-year-old Swiss, bidding to become the oldest champion in New York in 45 years, fired 12 aces, 29 winners and broke serve six times.
The 17-time Grand Slam champion goes on to face either Marcos Baghdatis or Steve Darcis.
The day’s drama was being served-up on Court Five where Australia’s Thanasi Kokkinakis retired on one leg in the fifth set against French 12th seed Richard Gasquet.
The 19-year-old Kokkinakis suffered from cramping and was warned by the umpire that he was putting his health at risk if he continued.
But he battled on, serving from a standing start and forced to play at walking pace before he finally gave up, losing 4-6, 6-1, 4-6, 6-3, 2-0 after almost three hours in 30-degree heat.
He was the eighth man to retire from the first round, a record for the US Open before Kazakhstan’s Aleksandr Nedovyesov quickly became the ninth.
He was down 6-0, 7-6 (7/2), 1-0 to former champion Lleyton Hewitt when he called a halt after suffering a right shoulder injury.
Earlier, Latvia’s Ernests Gulbis also quit, handing Great Britain’s Aljaz Bedene a 3-6, 6-4, 3-0 win.
Six men had retired on Monday.
In other early men’s action, American number one John Isner breezed past Malek Jaziri of Tunisia 6-2, 6-3, 6-4 on the back of 24 aces and 54 winners.
Czech sixth seed Tomas Berdych, who made the semi-finals in 2012, was also a comfortable winner, seeing off American wildcard Bjorn Fratangelo 6-3, 6-2, 6-4.
Japan may have lost fourth seed Kei Nishikori in the first round on Monday, but 19-year-old Yoshihito Nishioka restored some national pride with a 6-4, 2-6, 6-7 (7/9), 6-1, 6-2 win over fellow qualifier Paul-Henri Mathieu of France.