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Fed sodeling match has started
Fed holds.
Federer leads 3 games to love. Soderling to serve. First set.
Federer taks the first set 6-0.
Federer takes the second set 6-3.
Roger wins
22nd Consecutive Semi-Final Appearance :clap: :clap: :clap:.
Roger Federer slams into semifinals with another win over Robin Soderling
BY Ohm Youngmisuk
DAILY NEWS SPORTS WRITER
Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/mo...#ixzz0QiLrqaNs
When it comes to Roger Federer, some things never change.
He always makes a Grand Slam semifinal. He seemingly always wins at the U.S. Open. And he never loses to Robin Soderling.
Shortly after teen sensation Melanie Oudin's magical run ended Wednesday night, Federer advanced to an amazing 22nd consecutive Grand Slam semifinal by eliminating Soderling, 6-0, 6-3, 6-7 (6), 7-6 (6), in a rematch of this year's French Open final.
While Soderling made him earn it, Federer improved to 12-0 lifetime against the 12th-seeded Swede.
Federer will have to be better in his semifinal when he faces fourth-seeded Novak Djokovic for the third straight year. He eliminated Djokovic in the semifinals last year and beat him in the final the year before.
"We have seen over the years what a great player he is on hard courts," Federer said.
Nobody, though, has been better than Federer here. The five-time defending U.S. Open champion won his 39th straight U.S. Open match and hasn't lost here since 2003, when David Nalbandian beat him in the fourth round. And now he's back in yet another Grand Slam semi, two victories away from becoming the first man since Bill Tilden in 1925 to win a sixth straight U.S. Open.
While Federer possesses a lengthy record book, he also owns Soderling. Federer has now beaten Soderling four times alone this year, including the French final and a fourth-round victory at Wimbledon.
"It feels great," Federer said. "It was so close towards the end. It was just great relief because Robin started playing better and better. The beginning was a bit too easy."
Soderling, the man with the monster forehand and serve who handed Rafael Nadal his first loss at the French Open, won just 13points total in the first set and dropped the first two sets in only 59 minutes.
But he started serving bigger and crushing his forehand in the third set and won just his second set ever off Federer and first since 2005 when Federer let a 5-2 lead slip away in the third-set tiebreaker.
In the fourth-set tiebreak, Soderling earned a set point at 6-5 with two big serves. But Federer fought it off with a second-serve service winner. Soderling then sprayed a backhand wide and a forehand wide on the next two points to send Federer to yet another Grand Slam semifinal.
"It's not what I aim for, that is for sure," Federer said of his semifinal record. "I really don't know what to say. It is really one of the greatest records for me."
http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/mo...#ixzz0QiLpe0LI
Federer and Djokovic Stay Course for Semifinal Showdown
By LYNN ZINSER and DAVID WALDSTEIN
Published: September 9, 2009
Of all the gaudy accomplishments that branded Roger Federer one of the best tennis players of all time, there is one for which he has never received a trophy.
By ousting the 12th-seeded Robin Soderling Wednesday night in a surprisingly nerve-racking quarterfinal at the United States Open, Federer reached his 22nd consecutive semifinal at a major tournament, which more than doubles the previous mark of 10 set by Ivan Lendl.
Awards are not handed out for quarterfinal victories, but Federer, who outlasted Soderling, 6-0, 6-3, 6-7 (6), 7-6 (6), deserves one for lifetime achievement in the quarterfinals, especially for this challenging victory.
“It’s probably one of the greatest records,” a relieved Federer said on court, “for me, anyway, in my personal career.”
The streak indicates a staggering level of consistency and success, made even more impressive by the fact that he went 18-3 in the previous 21 semifinals, and followed 15 of those with major championships, also a record for the men’s game.
The last time Federer didn’t make it to a semifinal at a Grand Slam was the 2004 French Open when, as the No. 1 seed, he was upset by Gustavo Kuerten in the third round.
And for a while Wednesday night, Federer was in danger of suffering an even greater upset at the hands of Soderling, who is now 0-12 against Federer, a record that includes a loss in the French Open final and in the fourth round at Wimbledon in July.
This time Soderling was within two points of losing in straight sets before he ramped up his game, and his serve, and forced Federer to save a set point in the fourth-set tie breaker.
After breezing through the first two sets, Federer suddenly looked tentative and vulnerable against Soderling’s thundering serves and daring passing shots.
With the fans starting to throw their support behind Soderling, Federer led by 5-2 in the third-set tie breaker, only two points from winning the match in less than two hours. At that point Soderling surged back and took the set.
In the fourth set the players remained on serve again, with Federer serving brilliantly when he needed it. Federer was never broken the whole match, allowing Soderling just a peak at five break points. Federer never broke Soderling in the last two sets.
The fourth-set tie breaker also started evenly, with the players splitting the first six points, but what happened next sent a jolt of electricity through the chilled crowd.
With Federer trailing, 3-4, the players traded four consecutive aces, and then Soderling hit a bold service winner up the middle to take a 6-5 lead.
But Federer saved the critical point and then set up a match point when Soderling’s backhand down the line went wide. Finally, Soderling hit another forehand wide, brining an end to a dangerous test for Federer.
Now Federer, who is seeking his sixth consecutive Open title, will face Novak Djokovic in the semifinals for the second consecutive year. Djokovic, the No. 4 seed, came from a set down Wednesday afternoon to oust No. 10 Fernando Verdasco, 7-6 (2), 1-6, 7-5, 6-2.
Djokovic, who is in the semifinals for the third straight year, spent the season struggling to keep himself in the conversation with the top players in the world and made a big stride toward doing that Wednesday.
He has made clear his desire to win the Open and become more than a footnote to the rivalry that dominates men’s tennis, between Federer and Rafael Nadal. And Djokovic admitted he has made a concerted effort to change the negativity that rained on him last year, when he criticized Andy Roddick in an on-court interview.
The crowd turned on him in a New York minute, and Djokovic seemed to grow more surly from the experience. This year, he has worked on his image, and his temper.
He hired Todd Martin, the serious-minded former American professional, who has helped him with his serve and his confidence. And he has invited children of the victims of the Sept. 11 attacks to his matches. “It’s a gesture that I hope has meaning for them,” he said, adding that his own heritage has made him familiar with war.
“Obviously, we don’t want to talk about the past and what happened,” he said.
In his tennis game, he may reach back to recapture the good feelings from his 2007 run, but he is only looking forward now.
Djokovic needed more than three hours to advance, and he could not relax until the fourth set, when Verdasco fell apart in a heap of errors.
Early, it looked as if that fate might befall Djokovic, but he captured a back-and-forth first set by getting hot during the tie breaker while Verdasco struggled with unforced errors.
But Verdasco found some momentum early in the second set, breaking Djokovic and starting to pound his forehand harder, which drove Djokovic deeper in the court and kept him from dictating the points. Djokovic grew frustrated and his footwork broke down. He lost his serve three times as Verdasco cruised through the set.
But Djokovic found some traction in the third set, mostly by cranking up his first serve, and it was Verdasco’s turn to struggle with some ghastly errors. Serving at 5-5, Verdasco botched a volley into a wide-open court and hit it long to fall behind by 15-40, and he swiped the net with his racket in frustration. He fought back to deuce, but Djokovic earned the break when Verdasco sprayed a forehand wide of the court on another break point. Djokovic served out to win the third set.
He carried that play into the fourth set, when Verdasco also began struggling with a stomach muscle injury. He called for a trainer after losing his serve to fall behind, 2-1, and the number of errors he sprayed far wide indicated he was laboring to control his shots.
Djokovic, sensing that vulnerability, used his punishing serve to keep control of the match.
Djokovic has long grown used to running into an unbeatable Federer in Grand Slam events, including the Open final in 2007, which Federer won in straight sets.
Federer beat Djokovic in the final of a recent hardcourt tournament in Cincinnati, but Djokovic had won the two previous meetings they played this year, one on clay in Rome and one on hardcourts in Miami.
Djokovic had advanced to this point without much drama. He did drop a set in his third round match against Jesse Witten, but seemed to crank up his game in an easy three-set victory against Radek Stepanek.
After that match, which was played at night on Arthur Ashe Stadium, ESPN had time to fill at the end of the broadcast, which it did by having John McEnroe walk down to the court to hit against Djokovic, who also entertained the crowd with an impression of McEnroe. It was the first public chance for Djokovic to rehabilitate his image here.
“I learned from my mistakes,” he said. “It’s all right, as long as I realize the things that happen and try to take the best out of it, and then try to gain back the crowd.”
Liz Robbins contributed reporting.
Federer weathers Soderling storm to reach semis
Thu Sep 10, 2009 1:45am EDT
By Pritha Sarkar
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Five-times champion Roger Federer weathered a mighty Swedish storm before beating 12th seed Robin Soderling 6-0 6-3 6-7 7-6 to reach the semi-finals of the U.S. Open Wednesday.
Gusting winds and the magic of Federer threw Soderling off course in a first set that flashed by in just 25 minutes on an unseasonably cool night at Flushing Meadows.
Yet, just when it seemed that Federer would blow away Soderling to roll into his 22nd consecutive grand slam semi-final, the Swede perked up and set pulses racing for over an hour as he inched toward an unlikely upset.
"It feels great. It was so close toward the end. It's just a great relief to come through because Robin started playing better and better as the match went on," said Federer, who will take on fourth seed Novak Djokovic for a place in Sunday's showpiece.
"I knew he was going to be tough.
"The beginning was a bit too easy. All of a sudden he fought his way into the match and showed what a great player he is.
"I had a really good start. I thought it was cold so I think I felt at home being from Switzerland. Then it got even cooler and him being from Sweden I think that played in his favor," joked the top seed.
"I thought it was a great match toward the end."
His victim added: "I never played anyone who played that well in windy conditions... but it's tough to play worse than I did in the first two sets, so it could only get better."
Soderling entered the match with a 0-11 record against the all-conquering Swiss and looked to be heading toward another mauling as he did not register on the scoreboard until holding for 1-1 in the second set.
But that only turned into a brief respite as he was powerless to stop Federer from breezing through it in double quick time, sparking a mass exodus from Arthur Ashe Stadium.
CAUGHT COLD
But if the thousands of fans who streamed out early had stuck around for only a few more minutes, they would have seen the tide turning as Soderling suddenly warmed up to the task.
He crafted two break points in the sixth game but could only shake his head in disbelief as Federer fired down two thunderbolt deliveries to get out himself out of a corner.
The 15-times grand slam champion looked to be heading for another straight-sets win when he steamed ahead 4-0 in the tiebreak but to the astonishment of the crowd, he was overtaken.
The Swedish 12th seed, who was runner-up to Federer in the French Open final, hit back with some crafty forehands to strike back and snatch it 8-6.
As the clock crept toward the midnight hour, Federer looked like a man who was being forced to work over-time against his wishes.
But just when it seemed that the night might stretch on indefinitely, with the Swede holding set point at 6-5 in the fourth set tiebreak, Federer yelled "Come On" as Soderling smacked a service return wide.
Two points later a roar rang out all over Flushing Meadows as a Soderling forehand error handed Federer victory at 12.09 am local time, allowing him to reach his 22nd consecutive grand slam semi-final.
"It's probably one of the greatest records for me in my personal career. I'm just happy it keeps on going," said the 28-year-old, who would match Bill Tilden's championship run in the 1920s with a sixth successive title here.
"I'm healthy, I guess that's most important because that's what allows me to play well in majors, for a shot again to defend my title."
(Editing by Larry Fine)
http://www.reuters.com/article/sport...090910?sp=true