Roger Federer's Vintage Semifinal Win Sets Up Another Shot at Wimbledon Glory

You're not supposed to actually be able to turn back time, but somehow, Roger Federer has found a way.

On Friday in the Wimbledon semifinals, Federer demolished an in-form Andy Murray 7-5, 7-5, 6-4.

He was graceful but aggressive, calm yet urgent, precise yet creative. He was Federer at his very best, and mere weeks before his 34th birthday, the legend even managed to impress himself, per SI Tennis:

Now the Swiss maestro has yet another chance to add to his already astonishing legacy and to prove that even aging greats are worthy of encores.

On Sunday, Federer will meet Novak Djokovic in the Wimbledon final once again, a rematch of last year's affair. Like last year, this will be his chance to win a record-setting eighth Wimbledon crown and his record-stretching 18th Slam.

In the 2014 final at the All England Club, Federer was able to push Djokovic to the brink. He looked primed for the age-defying upset before falling 6-7, 6-4, 7-6, 5-7, 6-4.

This year, he's playing even better, looking like an in-full-flight carbon-copied version from his glory days. 

Time might have mildly muted Federer's consistency, but as Bill Connelly from SB Nation wrote, his talent is still firmly intact. 

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Twelve years after his first slam title and three years after his last, the tennis player's tennis player still hits shots that baffle, creates winners from nothing, and knocks mostly unreturnable serves into corners of the box. In an age when Rafael Nadal is battling both injuries and confidence, when Murray has dealt with back injuries, and when many of the so-called next generation of potential stars have seen either injury or stalled development, Federer's mere presence is a wink from Father Time, a nod that even He appreciates aesthetics.

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Still, nothing is a given for Federer at this point in his career. 

While he's kept a steady presence at the top of the game—he is currently ranked No. 2 in the world and has made 18 finals and won nine titles since the start of the 2014 season—it's been easy, even understandable, to count out Federer over the past few years.

Pavel Golovkin/Associated Press

Recently, in the biggest moments on the biggest stages, Federer hasn't been able to play his best.

We saw a clear example of this at the U.S. Open last year, when he had no answers for Marin Cilic in the semifinals. We saw it even more drastically at the Australian Open in January, when he lost in the third round to the unheralded Andreas Seppi.

And just last month in Paris, we saw Federer look lost and helpless out there on court against his countryman Stan Wawrinka in the French Open quarterfinals.

However, Wimbledon has long been his most successful Slam and Centre Court the place in tennis he looked most at home. That's been truer than ever this fortnight. He's looked revitalized.

In his win over Murray on Friday, Federer won 29 points at the net and hit 56 winners to only 11 unforced errors in three sets. The 17-time Slam champion served 20 aces, won 84 percent of his first-serve points and wasn't broken once.

Andy Roddick said he thinks Federer's service game might be the best it's ever been, via BBC Tennis:

He completely took the match off of Murray's racket, the same way he used to do to every player who came into his path during his years of regularly winning three Slams per year.

Of course, Djokovic is a slightly tougher opponent than Murray these days, but Federer has had the Serb's number in the past. Federer still leads their head-to-head 20-19, and despite the fact that these are undoubtedly Djokovic's glory years, Federer has defeated Djokovic in two of their last four encounters.

So while the Federer cynics can find reasons to doubt if they look closely enough, it's much easier to see the glass as half full heading into the Wimbledon final.

Over the past 12 years, Federer has defied physics and tennis conventions. Now, far past his presumed prime, he's defying the inevitable decline.

One of the greatest athletes in tennis history isn't quite done writing history yet. We'll have to tune in on Sunday to see what exactly this chapter of greatness contains.