Rooting for a Roger Slam!

It's 3-6 4-3, Federer serving. The crowd is definitely behind Roger. I have a feeling that they came not to watch Federer and Nadal play each other but to see history being made. And they won't settle for anything less. You can do it Roger!

ITF honours Federer for 2006

Federer was recognized as the the men's World Champion for 2006 by the International Tennis Federation during a dinner held in honour of other outstanding tennis players last Tuesday, 05 June. Last season, Federer won a total of 12 titles, had an amazing 92-5 win-loss record and extended his already huge lead at No. 1 in the rankings. Federer also had won the award for his accomplishments in 2004 and 2005.

However, it was John McEnroe, who received the Philippe Chatrier award, who bestowed the greater praise on Federer by saying during his acceptance speech that a French Open title this year would establish the current world tennis number one as the greatest ever to play the sport.

Federer vs. Nadal again at French Open finals

A decidedly lackluster Federer eked out a straight-sets win over Nikolai Davydenko at the semifinals of the French Open, 7-5 7-6(5) 7-6(7). He had to fight back from a break down in each set as Davydenko seemingly would not believe that he could defeat the Swiss world tennis number one. One commentator even jokingly noted that Davydenko had changed to an orange shirt in the third set perhaps in order to blend in with the court and make it difficult for Federer to see him. Nevertheless, a visibly relieved Federer was satisfied with his performance:

"It was tight until the end. I could have lost in three sets but I won. He's an excellent player and that was a good test for me before the final."

What's more is that he managed to set yet another record along the way by making his eighth consecutive appearance at the finals of a grand slam tournament.

He will once again face world tennis number two and second seed Rafael Nadal who defeated a feisty Novak Djokovic 7-5 6-4 6-2 in a much more scintillating match in the other semifinals. Nadal is now the only man who stands between Federer and the only grand slam title to elude him as well as the distinction of being only the third man to hold all four grand slam titles at the same time.

Federer in French Open semifinals

Tonight I witnessed Federer drop his first set in 12 matches in a Grand Slam tournament on his way to a victory over Spaniard Tommy Robredo, 7-5 1-6 6-1 6-2 in the quarterfinals of Roland Garros a.k.a. the French Open. Despite the hiccup, Federer still set two records:

• by winning the first set, he won a 36th consecutive set at a grand slam tournament, and
• he made it to a record 12th consecutive grand slam semi-final.
  

He will be battling Nikolai Davydenko for a place in his 8th consecutive Grand Slam finals. Davydenko defeated the dangerous Argentine Guillermo Canas in his quarterfinal match, 7-5 6-4 6-4.

While I was gone...

I haven't posted in nearly two months, having been out of the country for a month's vacation. Before that, I was busy wrapping up things at work so that I could pass them on to whoever would be taking up my duties while I was gone.

Now that I'm back, quite a lot has happened since that last post about both Federer and Nadal getting into the finals at Monte Carlo:

• Nothing new at that finals as Nadal won his third straight title at Monte Carlo 4-6 4-6.
  
• Yet another honor was bestowed on Federer: he was named by TIME magazine as one of 100 most influential people in the world today. According to the magazine, these are the men and women "whose power, talent or moral example is transforming the world". The write-up about Federer who was classified under "Heroes and Pioneers" was penned by no less than tennis legend Rod Laver.
• Then the Rome AMS was not kind at all to Federer when he lost in the third round to Filippo Volandri in straight sets 2-6 4-6. Oh well.
• Federer unexpectedly split with Tony Roche, his part-time coach for two-and-a-half years, blaming a "lack of communication"--and not his recent slump--for the decision. Federer has stated that he intends to go it alone until at least Wimbledon this year.
• Finally Federer made a very crucial breakthrough at the Hamburg AMS where he defeated Nadal at the finals to win a fourth title there. More importantly, he halted the clay court specialist's winning streak on clay at 81 matches! Way to go, Roger! Federer had a very poor start at the match, dropping the first set 1-6 before he came back in the second winning it 6-2. Better still, he won the deciding third set 6-0, another bagel from the prolific Federer's Bakery--and on Nadal's beloved clay no less! Loved the exciting rally with Nadal serving during the third set at 0-3, 15-0. One could see how much the win meant to him when he let out an almighty roar to celebrate match point. I also loved the scene where Mirka came down to courtside to congratulate her man. So sweet!