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Federer routs Ferrero to reach final, No 1 spot

MELBOURNE: Roger Federer routed Spain’s Juan Carlos Ferrero 6-4 6-1 6-4 on Friday to reach his maiden Australian Open final and take the world number one ranking for the first time.

The Wimbledon champion and second seed knocked all life out of his opponent in 89 minutes before kneeling on centre court and saluting the awe-struck crowd. “I knew I had the chance to be number one in the world,” he sighed with relief. “Maybe I have a poker-face most of the time but I felt nervous.”

Those nerves were never on show as the stylish Swiss hit shots lesser players can only dream of, humbling the French Open champion and third seed in the process. “I am confident. I mean, have you ever seen a number one in the world who is not that confident?” he joked on court.

Federer will face mighty Marat Safin in Sunday’s final after the unseeded Russian downed defending champion Andre Agassi in five sets on Thursday. Federer can be assured vocal support from the ever growing Swiss contingent. “The Swiss are neutral when it comes to other things but when it comes to sport they are freaking out right now,” he laughed.

Looking forward to Sunday’s showpiece, Federer said: “(Marat is) a great player, it will be a great match. He’s in the finals and it’s very nice to see.” If Federer can reach the heights he scaled in this semi-final, it is hard to see how Safin could live with him.

Clearly rattled: On the Rod Laver Arena he bore down on the net, setting out his game plan from the beginning. Slashing his serve out wide or into the Spaniard’s body, he followed his first one in and cut off the rangy Spaniard’s angles.

On his second serve he stayed back, thrashing groundstrokes from side to side as Ferrero scampered to hunt the ball down. Far from opening defensively, though, Ferrero patrolled the baseline looking for the smallest of openings, pummelling the ball into the smallest of gaps in Federer’s armour.

Little could separate the men in the first set. Federer fought off three break points in the seventh game, fighting back from love-40 to nose ahead once more. Again Ferrero drew level, unerring in his accuracy.

In the 10th game, Federer pounced. Unloading on the Spaniard’s serve he cracked a series of returns and on his first set point, an under-pressure Ferrero flicked a forehand long. Opening up the second set, Federer kept the heat on, drilling a serve at the Spaniard to hold as Ferrero simply shrugged his shoulders and returned to his seat.

Clearly rattled, Ferrero was broken instantly, hooking a crosscourt forehand into the tramlines before falling behind 3-0. Dressed all in black, the Spaniard tore a bandage from his left thigh at the next changeover, desperate for anything to change his luck. A clutch of solid first serves allowed him to get on the scoreboard for 3-1, and buoyed, he set about the Federer delivery with renewed vigour.

Deft touch: However the Swiss player’s deft touch rescued him, a delicately floated backhand forcing the Spaniard off balance and he missed as Federer eased 4-1 ahead. Another piledriver of a forehand gave Federer another break and a 5-1 lead, leaving Ferrero to thump his racket into his left thigh in fury and frustration.

Two minutes later the Swiss was two sets up after less than an hour and Ferrero could only stare into space. Out of ideas and with patience wearing thin, the baseliner attempted ever more audacious drop shots and angled volleys – more often missing than not – but managed to stay with the Swiss early in the third set. His fragile confidence was finally shattered in the seventh game when Federer broke him for a fourth time in total, tearing a return back onto the Spaniard’s toes. Serving comfortably he moved to 5-3, one game from victory and he made no mistake, forcing Ferrero to return a forehand long after yet another heavy serve. —Reuters

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