Haassassination

Roger Federer plays tennis so beautiful it hurts.

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This was just a lovely match. The score makes it look really close, but the reality was that you never, ever felt that Federer was in danger of losing. It felt like he was in the driver's seat for the entire match. And once he had that first set under his belt, even though Haas stayed with him... it was all over, Red Rover.

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Let's start with some gratuitous Tommy praise, because he did good, seriously. He served like a mofo and if he was playing a lesser player I don't reckon he'd have been broken. As it was, with Federer playing some majorly sweet tennis, those two breaks of serve still had to be eked out. And I liked seeing Tommy come into net and serve and volley - and he didn't crumble mentally, which he's done in the past. It was, in a way, better than the match he played against Federer in Paris, because he lost a massive lead there. Here, he struggled gamely but came up ultimately short against a player who is quite simply, amazing.

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And the thing is, that wasn't even close to the Federer Full Throttle (tm). It wasn't his beautiful Ultimate God Mode tennis, but it was incredible nonetheless. It was more to do with the aura of confidence he was radiating than anything else. He looked like he belonged there - and he does. This is his backyard, and he's the king of the castle at the moment.

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And in the final, he'll play... Andy.

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Roddick.

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And who predicted that at the beginning of the tournament?

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Me.

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I'm good. Oh yes I am.

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And what a match that battle of the Andies was! I live-tweeted the whole thing (as anyone who follows me on Twitter will probably have, you know, picked up - and that was a total popcorn match. In fact, I had popcorn. It was so enjoyable and so much fun to watch with some great tennis from both players. And Andy Roddick can... volley! This is a far cry from the player we used to see actively run away from the net. He played a brilliant tactical match today - and Murray, celebrated tactician though he is, could not adjust to what Roddick did.

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And it's just so great to see Roddick through. A Federer/Roddick final... that's old school, you know? That's like it was in the old days. Roddick said after his match that he didn't know if he'd ever have the opportunity to play for another Slam title, and I think Wimbledon is a very fitting title for him to play for, considering the wonderful finals he and Roger have had in the past.

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Make no mistake. I'm all Roger, all the way - and I both want him to and think he will win. But I'm really glad to see Roddick there. After the match he played today - clever, smart, aggressive tennis - he deserves that spot walking out under the celebrated lines of Kipling's If. He's earned his place here, and it will be like a final of days gone by to see these two playing each other.

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And also, who predicted that Federer would beat Haas and Roddick would beat Murray in the semis before a ball of the tournament was even played? That would be me. A little respect over here, please?!

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Today's Results

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The Championships (Wimbledon)

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Men's Draw

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Roger Federer def. Tommy Haas, 7-6 (7-3) 7-5 6-3

Andy Roddick def. Andy Murray, 6-4 4-6 7-6 (9-7) 7-6 (7-5)