Roger Federer
Roger Federer of Switzerland returns the ball to John Isner of the U.S. during their fourth round match at the U.S. Open Championships tennis tournament in New York September 7, 2015. REUTERS/Carlo Allegri REUTERS/Carlo Allegri

Roger Federer booked his place in the final eight by overcoming the last American standing in the men's singles event, John Isner, 7-6(0) 7-6(6) 7-5 on Monday evening. Federer will face Richard Gasquet to secure his place in the semifinal of the 2015 US Open.

The five-time US Open champion played tiebreaker sets for the first time in this year’s tournament against the big-serving American. The Swiss legend became the first player to shut out Isner in a tiebreaker. According to ATPWorldTour.com, the highest-ranked American on tour had never lost by a 7-0 score in 428 tour-level tiebreaks that he had played. Isner is considered as one of the best tiebreak players in tennis.

Federer struck the most number of aces with 15 against his match against Isner. The Swiss struck 42 aces, 157 winners, and 80 unforced errors from all his previous matches. It is Federer’s 46th grand slam quarterfinal appearance. He was a semifinalist last year at Flushing Meadows.

The Swiss will play Gasquet in the quarterfinal for a spot in the final four. Gasquet beat Czech Tomas Berdych to move on to the last eight at Flushing Meadows. The Frenchman was the player who ousted Australia’s Thanasi Kokkinakis 4-6 6-1 4-6 6-3 2-0 in the first round and Bernard Tomic 6-4 6-3 6-1 in the third round.

This is the first time that Gasquet has reached the US Open quarterfinal. He also reached the final four of the Wimbledon Championships this season. He has already played 16 sets in the tournament.

For the third time in their personal tennis careers, Federer and Gasquet will do battle in a grand slam event. They played during the first round and semifinal of the 2006 and 2007 Wimbledon, respectively, with Federer winning both matches. The Swiss owns a 14-2 head-to-head series advantage over Gasquet. Their last meeting took place this season in Dubai.

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