Rafael Nadal overcomes early scare

NEW YORK -- Roger Federer had already departed the tournament in a shocking fourth-round loss, and now his fabulous foil, Rafael Nadal was a struggling against Philipp Kohlschreiber. You could feel the air rushing out of this 2013 US Open.
When the No. 2 seed lost a first-set tiebreaker to the No. 22-seeded German, panic ensued.
Not to worry, it was just Rafa being Rafa. In typical methodical fashion, he chased down Kohlschreiber and won going away, 6-7 (4), 6-4, 6-3, 6-1. The match went 3 hours, 12 minutes.
Nadal continues to be the only man in the draw who hasn't had his serve broken. He hit 19 more winners than unforced errors and was much cleaner than Kohlschreiber, who was only plus-2.
"For me it's just amazing to have this win on Arthur Ashe for this crowd," Nadal said. "In conditions like today, to lose the first set is very difficult."
And now, instead of another anticipated match with Federer -- which would have been their very first here in New York -- it's Nadal against countryman Tommy Robredo, who escorted Federer from the grounds in straight sets.
Nadal, who took the court knowing Robredo was winning, said he didn't know the outcome in his on-court interview. He seemed happy when told it was Robredo.
"We'll he's [Robredo] playing great," Nadal said. "He's in a similar situation coming back from an injury like me [a leg issue]. Today, winning against Roger in the US Open, he will come to my match with great confidence. I will have to play my best."
Three of the four players in the quarterfinals in the bottom half of the draw are Spaniards.

Source: http://espn.go.com/tennis/usopen13/story/_/id/9629065/us-open-rafael-nadal-overcomes-early-scare