2010 U.S. Open Quarterfinals: Federer Avenges French Open Loss By Rolling Over Soderling

Highlights from quarterfinal action in Day 10 of the 2010 U.S. Open:

• (2) Roger Federer def. (5) Robin Söderling, 6-4, 6-4, 7-5.

Roger Federer controls the weather. Which is cool; he seems like a chill bro. Let him be in charge.

• (1) Caroline Wozniacki def. Dominika Cibulkova 6-2, 7-5.

Order is restored! No more Cinderellas in the semis, gale winds be damned.

• (3) Novak Djokovic def (17) Gael Monfils, 7-6, 6-1, 6-2.

Can we get some sort of international compact going whereby these two compete in doubles together at all majors? Or create a special season just for them, I don’t care. The ratings would be off the charts.

• (7) Vera Zvonareva def. (31) Kaia Kanepi, 6-3, 7-5.

Order is further restored! No lower seeds remaining in the women’s draw at all. (Zvonareva is herself the lowest remaining.)

Like every other player on the court today, No. 2 Roger Federer and No. 5 Robin Söderling battled the elements as well as each other in their 2010 U.S. Open quarterfinals match. Söderling got off to a strong start, and rallied hard in the third set, but no amount of self-screaming could overcome a straight-set Federer victory that clocked in at just under two hours, 6-4, 6-4, 7-5.

The highlight of the match was the diabolical utilization of the howling winds by Federer, who at one point appeared to use a gust to guide a drop shot over the net. And just to pile on, he scored match point on an ace.

No. 1 Caroline Wozniacki will take the last spot in the 2010 U.S. Open semifinals after defeating Dominika Cibulkova, 6-2, 7-5. She’s surely happy to advance, but also happy to forget a match riddled on both sides with double faults and aborted service tosses.

Even the broadcasting crew was brutalized by the high winds Wednesday night. Pam Shriver called the court conditions “torturous,” and the cameramen at times had trouble keeping their equipment steady. Trash occasionally blew into the plays, and Wozniacki in particular was bothered by her hair blowing into her field of vision. (At one point, Shriver called Wozniacki a “good tactical player” for braiding her ponytail. That’s how Lord of the Flies it got in there.)

Vera Zvonareva took care of business Wednesday afternoon, beating Kaia Kanepi, 6-3, 7-5, in the quarterfinals of the 2010 U.S. Open. The seventh-seeded Russian will meet the winner of tonight’s Caroline Wozniacki/Dominika Cibulkova match in the semifinals, on Friday.

Windy conditions seemed to take a toll on 31st-seeded Kanepi, who made 60 unforced errors. It was ugly at times. Mishits plagued both players, but Zvonareva, a finalist at this year’s Wimbledon, was undaunted. She broke Kanepi seven times en route to victory.