Federer wins U.S. Open, making history

Roger Federer won the U.S. Open yesterday. He played superb. We saw the great Roger Federer that we know and love. He was so relaxed and it was a lot of fun watching him play. Andy Murray was rattled about being in a final and he just didn't perform as well as I know he wanted. Roger took advantage of those nerves by breaking early in the first set. He got his first point within the first minute! That was so funny. I just busted out laughing and rewound the tape so I could watch it again. I was surprised the Roger moved up to the net as often as he did. The commentators said that winning gold for the doubles in the Olympics really boosted his confidence in that area. I whole-heartedly agree with them.

I found this article on the U.S. Open website.

Federer Seizes History, Captures Fifth in a Row
By Lisa Zimmerman
Monday, September 8, 2008

Roger Federer has made history. By taking the US Open men's title after his 6-2, 7-5, 6-2 win over No. 6 Andy Murray, Federer became the first man to win five successive titles at two different Grand Slam events (the Open and Wimbledon).

The difference, on paper, between the two players was stark. For Murray, who has only been on the pro circuit for four years, this was his first Grand Slam final. In fact, he had never advanced past a quarterfinal round of any previous Slam. For Federer, it was his 17th Slam final, with 12 titles going into today’s match.

Federer’s biggest challenge this year was not another player, but the mononucleosis that made him ill and not himself for several months and contributed to knocking him out of the No. 1 spot, which he had held for a record 4.5 years.

"I didn't feel like I was moving all that great for the last couple of months," Federer said. "On hard courts, my coordination was missing a little bit."

In fact, the last time Federer had a year without a Grand Slam win was 2002, prior to his first Wimbledon title in 2003.

“This is a very special moment in my career,” said Federer. “To take this one home is incredible. It means the world to me.”

As for Murray, he is focused on the future. “There are so many things I can improve on, and that’s exciting. I hope this will be the start of big things for me.”

While Federer was the crowd favorite, Murray had more than his fair share of supporters, with several people seen sporting kilts in a sign of solidarity for the Scotsman.

The electricity crackled across the court before play even got underway. When Federer opened with an ace, things only accelerated from there. The match clock had barely ticked past one minute before Federer was up 1-0.

While the two stuck for the most part with standard baseline volleying, it wasn’t long before they engaged in some lively net play, as well. Federer had a tremendous amount of success with his cross-court forehand, while Murray’s slice drew gasps from the crowd.

Up 3-2 in the first set, Federer had his first break of the match. Then up 5-2 and with Murray appearing a little rattled, Federer broke for the second time and took the first set. He continued to roll in the second, holding and then breaking again to go up 2-0.

"Today, I think I really chose the right tactics against Andy, who himself is a good tactician," Federer said.

Murray then steadied himself and worked his way back to 2-all. Then, with the fans in Arthur Ashe Stadium encouraging Federer every way they could, he fought back from 0-40 to hold. The game featured a highly questionable shot, which Federer appeared to have hit long, but the linesman called it in. Murray chose not to stop play to challenge, but a television replay showed that the ball had indeed been out.

At 5-5, Murray could not hang on, and Federer put another set in his win column. Whether it was lack of experience, or simply that Federer is still in a league of his own, the third and final set was over practically before it began. Federer went up 5-0, before Murray suddenly came to life, holding his serve and then breaking.

“It was my goal to try to win the tournament,” Murray said later.

But that was not to be this year. At championship point, Federer could clearly be seen yelling, “Come on!” And then as Murray hit the ball into the net, it was a combination of euphoria and relief that crossed Federer’s face, as he fell to the ground and the crowd erupted.