Roger Federer's Sunday Morning Smackdown!

Sunday morning in the States.  Sedate, leisurely—the paper, coffee, and an extra special dog treat for Fido.   

Unless you are a tennis fan.

Then you’re in high gear preparing for three finals—one in St. Petersburg where Andy Murray is facing a qualifier, number 150 in the world Andrey Gulubev.

This one is a gimme. 

In Lyon, France, Robin Soderling faces Julien Benneteau…who? 

Right.

The crème de la crème match is in Basel where number one seed Roger Federer is facing his old nemesis—sometimes bane of his existence—number two seed David Nalbandian.

They have been playing each other on tour since their junior years. Very often, Nalbandian gets the better of the Swiss virtuoso. 

Federer was on fire from the first. Two aces in the first game. Winners down the center, off the line, and in your face. 

Roger was not going to be denied. He wanted this victory and he was going to have it.

He served like a coiled spring and moved like waxed silk. Eight aces blazed past David Nalbandian, one of them a second serve ace down the line that wowed the Federer crowd. Federer surrendered only seven service points in the entire match.

Roger of yore rose up from the past and plastered Nalbandian with impeccable serves, blistering forehands, righteous backhands, and net play superlatives. 

Some commentators remarked that with play like this, Roger would not suffer in the number two position for long.       

To his credit Nalbandian never quit. He was no sack of potatoes standing in the corner today. He was working his butt off but to no avail.  Federer broke him twice, once in each set and that was enough to secure the win.

Nalbandian could not hang with Federer today. It would have been a real task for anyone to take Federer down. David never saw a break point on Federer’s serve. 

What can be said about Nalbandian? He lives well and he is capable of playing tennis as magnificently as anyone in the game today. But even playing his best he got smacked.  It happens.

He remarked at the end of the match, “I would like to congratulate Roger on a great match, which was almost perfect—but I think he missed one shot!” 

Roger said he was “thrilled” by his serve and his aggressive game.  He won 6-3, 6-4 in a little over an hour. It netted him his 57th career win. 

Earlier Murray dispatched Andrey in 56 minutes, hardly breaking a sweat. According to ATP officials, it was the shortest match on the circuit this year. Andy continues to be hot, hot, hot. The British press is blissfully pasting his victory headlines ahead of other breaking news.

All is not totally bleak for Gulubev. After his show in Russia, he will break into the top 100 for the first time in his career.

Soderling broke a record, too.  He ended a Swede shutout that has lasted for three years. No player from Sweden has won an ATP tournament since 2005. 

When you think of how Swedes like Borg, Wilander, and Edberg—to name a mighty few from the recent past—used to dominate, this blank seems unimaginable.

Robin Soderling defeated Julien Benneteau, a Frenchman, in three sets. On his way to the final he sent Andy Roddick packing along with Gilles Simon—who has to be running on spent fumes with the amount of tennis he has played of late.  

These two gentlemen are still slugging it out to reach the Masters Championships to be held in Shanghai in November. 

They along with a host of hopefuls will be making a trip to Paris for the last Master Series tournament of the year before Shanghai. Combatants are already battling away in gay Paree.

The question of today is: will Federer join them?  To be continued...