Roger Federer
This reminds me of the Federer v Safin match - many found reasons why Federer would be challenged and, possibly, lose that match - but I tell you now there isn't a hope in hell for Roddick and if you think backing him at 6-1 is value you may aswell make a good samaratin out of yourself and donate it to charity rather than lose it to a Sportingbet agency. Roger Federer was sublime, exquisite, brilliant, elegantly marvellous against Juan Martin Del Potro, in fact, you could create a whole lot of superlatives to describe that fantastic performance. 12 aces, 70% of first serves in that yielded 86% of those points, 75% of second serve points, a Nadal-like ratio of winners to unforced errors (38 to 9), and 7 breaks of the big man's serve from just 11 opportunities presented. It was a clear reminder that the greatest player to ever grace the courts is nowhere near finished, and that his so-called "decline" from the top of the game was a pure media speculation based on face value instead of circumstances. Which player carrying such a terrible illness can still make three GS finals (winning one) and the semis of the other, when not moving as well and having tremendous troubles on the forehand wing after being struck down by a harsh virus that derailed Mario Ancic's career? Only Federer. For the entire tournament, the world number two has served 64% of first balls in, winning 77% of those points and as usual boasting a brilliant record behind the second ball that is producing 60% success. He's been broken just 6 times, but considering 5 times was in that awful match against Berdych, it's fair to say his serve is well and truly on fire. Andy Roddick benefited from an ill and overheated Novak Djokovic yesterday, the Serb had many answers early on to the A-Rod's passive baseline play before he succumbed to exhaustion and became a sitting duck after set two. The American is in great shape and his consistency off the ground (1.97 winners to every unforced error) has been a pleasure to watch, but that doesn't cut the mustard if you want to beat Federer in a best-of-5 match. Andy, equipped with a much heavier and faster serve than Federer, has fired down a tournament-high 79 aces and has won 80% of first serve points that have landed 65% of the time, but he is yet to meet anywhere near the quality of returner of Federer. Djokovic aside (due to illness), Roddick met the outclassed Rehnqvist, the flashy and inconsistent Malisse (who likes to tee off on the return), the double-handed grip of Santoro who's reach is compromised against huge servers and Robredo who simply stands too far back in the court to be able to impose himself against a delivery like Roddick's. In Federer, as he's been shown on many occasions, he meets a guy who won't give up too much grand, has an excellent slice backhand and bunt forehand to get the ball back into play and is literally capable of any shot in the book. Their h2h is an astounding 17-3 in Federer's favour, and although Roddick won their last encounter, the Swiss is 6-0 in their Grand Slam battles losing just two sets en route. This will no doubt be a night match on Rod Laver Arena, and it has been pointed out that those conditions sit so comfortably with Rog - the balls are a little heavier and fluff up a little quicker than during the day, and the ball obviously bounces a little lower which comes sweet into the hitting zone of the great man. The sting will be taken out just a tad off the Roddick serve, and although small you'll find it'll make a world of difference. Roddick always struggles against the slice backhand of Fed which draws him in and often leaves him helplessly dragged into the net, and he is simply outclassed in every aspect of the game. His forehand is consistent and capable of the big shot, but Federer's is the best in the business, Roddick's backhand is nothing more than a rally shot with little variety...Federer has the best slice in the business, and is more than able to penetrate with the single-handed topspin style that augured him well against del Potro early. Roddick has a huge serve that will earn him a few aces and many cheap points, but Federer again has more variety, will use the swinger out wide and is probably the best exponent (in terms of landing and effectiveness) of the one down the tee. Roddick is acrobatic at net, but his volleying skills compared to his rival are like trying to pit Karlovic up against Nadal for movement. Simple fact is, Roger is so hungry for this 14th Grand Slam and his 19th consecutive Grand Slam semi-final he will want to make up for his semi-final defeat here last year and go one better (actually, two). Andy has a fairly poor GS semi-final record (2-4, Federer 17-3), and the fact he has yet to play at night this year (in fact the last time he played at the Aus Open at night was that night against Fed, which for the sake of Roddick we won't re-live) is just another nail in his coffin
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