Davydenko through despite foot injury

For a while, it seemed as if the injury epidemic that caused 13 players to withdraw from the tournament had also found Nikolay Davydenko. During the third game of the second set, Davydenko asked a physiotherapist to attend to his left foot, which caused him considerable discomfort. Luckily, the injury was less serious than it appeared, allowing the Russian to resume his match against Thomas Hernych. He went on to win in straight sets: 6-3, 6-3.

Davydenko next plays Service Slammer Greg Rusedski of Great Britain. “An old acquaintance”, he grinned as he walked off court amidst loud applause. “Unless you’re able to read his service, you’re fighting a losing battle.”
Davydenko proved today that he is in excellent form at present. Hernych did have a few chances though. He managed to secure several breakpoints, but each time his Russian opponent produced the shots he needed. Davydenko kept his opponent at bay with powerful baseline strokes, at times wrong-footing Hernych completely. Last week, Davydenko and his fellow-countrymen convincingly beat the Dutch Davis Cup team in Amsterdam (5-0). Although he’s the No 1 seed here this year, he doesn’t feel any pressure: “I always want to play the best I can, no matter where I am”. Music to Richard Krajicek’s ears