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Roger Federer rules as Roddick fails to shine
OVER AND OUT:
The Swiss No. 1 can look forward to Sunday's Australian Open final, but Belgium's Kim Clijsters said farewell to the tournament of the last time after losing to Maria Sharapova
AFP, MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA
Friday, Jan 26, 2007, Page 24
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Kim Clijsters makes a return during her semi-final loss to Maria Sharapova at the Australian Open tennis tournament in Melbourne yesterday.
PHOTO: AP
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A rampaging Roger Federer crushed Andy Roddick to book his seventh consecutive Grand Slam final yesterday as Serena Williams rolled back the years to make a date with Maria Sharapova.
The defending men's champion was in a class of his own against the sixth seeded US player, who could only watch bemused as Federer rang him in rings to win 6-4, 6-0, 6-2 in just 1 hour 23 minutes.
"I'm shocked at it myself," said the top seed, who equalled the all-time record of consecutive major final appearances held by Australian Jack Crawford since 1934. "I played incredibly well. I don't know what I can say. It was unreal."
Of Federer's 11 Grand Slam finals he has won nine, spelling dire trouble for whoever wins the second semifinal between Germany's Tommy Haas and Chile's Fernando Gonzalez today.
Williams, 25, also showed why she is a seven-time Grand Slam champion, by beating Czech tenth seed Nicole Vaidisova 7-6 (7/5), 6-4.
Written off before the tournament, she proved she still has what it takes as she bids to become the first unseeded player to win the championship since 1978 when Australia's Chris O'Neil lifted the trophy.
It is her first Slam final in two years and waiting for her will be Sharapova, who rode roughshod over tournament favorite Kim Clijsters 6-4, 6-2, drawing the curtain on the Belgian's Australian adventure for the last time.
Clijsters is retiring at the end of the year to settle down and start a family.
Williams, whose performance in Melbourne will rocket her back into the world top 20, said that she was overjoyed as her remarkable comeback from injury continues.
"I'm really excited, I've got nothing to lose, I'm having fun, back into the top 20, that means so much to me," she said.
Williams had to fight hard for the win as her 17-year-old opponent staged a late fightback.
Sharapova becomes the first Russian woman to reach the final in Australia.
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