World number 1 Roger Federer claimed his fourth Wimbledon title in a row by defeating World number 2 Rafael Nadal in 4 hard fought sets. The Swiss master showed that he is still the man to be on the hallowed turf of Wimbledon.

Rush
Federer started off in a rush, claiming first break on his second breakpoint with an excellent forehand down the line after an epic rally. Federer got another break at 3-0 up, with an excellent backhand that Nadal was incapable of returning.

Federer got a chance to get his third break and take the set at 5-0 and 30-40. Nadal managed to take care of the first breakpoint with an excellent chipped lob over the advancing Federer. Federer got another breakpoint soon after, one that Nadal averted with an ace.

Bagle
Finally, at the third breakpoint Federer managed to convert it, putting a lovely crosscourt backhand past Nadal. This first set, 6-0, seemed put Federer firmly in control of the match.

Fightback
The second set show a complete turn around in the match, with Nadal immediately breaking the world number 1 to take a quick 2-0 lead.

Federer got a chance to break back at 3-1 down, but he failed in his attempt when he put an unbalanced forehand outside the lines. The match went on serve until 5-3 to Nadal, at which point Federer managed to fight himself back in the set and come back to 5-4.

Tie break
Both players then hold on to their serves to forge a second set tiebreak. The tiebreak was back and forth with Nadal grabbing an early mini-break at 2-1 up, Federer getting one back at 3-2 down. And with Federer finally taking the tie break at 6-5 up, when Nadal put a backhand in the net after some good Federer pressure.

Equal terms
The match was, after a quick first set, still very much on equal terms, with both players keeping their serves for the entire third set going to an inevitable tiebreak. Nadal got one chance to break at 3-2 up, but Federer took care of it with an unreturnable serve.

The tiebreak was now do or die for Nadal, who played like it was his last chance when he took a quick mini break with some excellent forehand pressure. Federer got the mini-break right back at 2-1 down, passing Nadal with a nicely played backhand after luring him to the net.

Turning on the engine
At 2-2 Nadal really started to turn on the engines, taking 2 mini-breaks at 3-2 up, with a Federer backhand error and forehand return winner on the line by Nadal himself. Nadal then eased to an important third set tiebreak win, winning the it 7-2 after a Federer forehand error.

The tiebreak win sparked an enthousiastic reaction from the Wimbledon crowd, who were hoping for more from a match that clearly showed who are today’s top players in tennis.

Taking control
Federer, however, was having none of it, as he broke Nadal at 2-1 up, after trying to put a lobbed backhand return over Nadal, who scuffed his volley and put it miles behind the baseline. Federer then practically put the match away with another break at 4-1 up, taking the initiave in the rally and volleying it away.

With Federer serving for the match, Nadal wasn’t done, however, running towards a quick break with a crosscourt backhand that forced Federer into a forehand error.

Federer got another chance to serve out the match at 5-3 and quickly moved to a 40-0 lead. Federer immediately converted his first matchpoint when Nadal floated a backhand outside the line.

Worthy adversary
This match showed that men’s tennis has finally found a worthy adversary for Federer, as Nadal pushed Federer all the way, sporting his new and improved brand of grasscourt tennis. With this win Federer put himself on equal terms with Pete Sampras and Bjorn Borg, with 4 Wimbledon wins in a row.

The world number 1 will by no means rest on his laurels next year, as he knows that he will find Nadal on his path to history next year.

Martina Hingis may have lost to Ai Sugiyama at the third round of Wimbledon last week, but there’s no stopping her from staying at Wimbledon as she cheered her boyfriend, Radek Stepanek, during his quarter final against Jonas Bjorkman.

Hingis, wearing a nice sleeveless dress topped with a denim jacket and with a Louis Vuitton leather bag, looked much like a trendy teener, sitting in the player’s box at court #1 of Wimbledon with Marek Vsetetick, a friend.

There was no doubt Hingis’ presence somehow pumped Stepanek’s fighting spirit as he made some shots which elicited a round of applause from the spectators, Martina Hingis included, though in the end, Jonas Bjorkman emerged as the winner.

Finally, Amelie Mauresmo was able to shake the monkey off her back, overcoming her nerves in a gallant fight with Justine Henin-Hardenne, 2-6, 6-3, 6-4. With her win, comes another accolade, having been the first Frenchwoman to win the singles title since the great Suzzane Lenglen won it in 1925. Incidentally, Mauresmo’s win levels her career head-to-her wins with Henin-Hardenne at 5-5.

The first set saw Henin-Hardenne race to a 2-0 lead. It was Henin-Hardenne who showed dominance early in the match by coming to the net more often, moving Mauresmo from side to side, using her trademark backhand shot. Mauresmo showed some resistance by holding her serve in the third game. The two players went on to win the next two games one after the other, both holding their respective serves, leaving the scoreboard at 3-2. With Mauresmo incurring double faults, and coupled with Henin-Hardenne’s tenacity, Henin-Hardenne went on to win the first set, 6-2, in thirty-one minutes.

The second set saw the tide turned against Henin-Hardenne as Mauresmo found her rhythm and rebounded, ending every volley with winners. Mauresmo then took the first three games. The two players then held their serves one after the other, pushing the score to 4-2 with Mauresmo, backed by a renewed level of confidence, leading. Henin-Hardenne, on the other hand, could only do so much, as she incurred unforced errors one after the other. At one point, Henin-Hardenne looked in her coach’s direction in the crowd, as if waiting for quick advice on how to stop the resurgent Mauresmo. Henin-Hardenne held her serve and won the seventh game of the second set to reduce Mauresmo’s lead to 4-3. Henin-Hardenne’s desire to recover and finish the match in two sets came to an end when a fully-pumped up Mauresmo won the next two games and the second set 6-3 in forty-nine minutes, to force a third set.

With a set win each, Mauresmo and Henin-Hardenne looked poised to give the fight of their lives for a third set win. Henin-Hardenne drew first blood by holding her serve, not to be outdone, Mauresmo responded by holding her serve to level the score at 1-1. After trading volleys and shots, Mauresmo led Henin-Hardenne in the third set, at 3-1. As Mauresmo’s serve improved, Henin-Hardenne lost her rhythm, often times committing unforced errors one after the other. Henin-Hardenne’s strategy of attacking the net saved her another game, as her trademark backhand shot proved futile at 3-2. With her growing confidence, and the crowd cheering her, Mauresmo was far from choking. Mauresmo then took the next game to lead at 4-2. Both players held their serves respectively, fighting stiff opposition with score at 5-3. Just when Mauresmo thought she was in for a big win by the end of the game, Henin-Hardenne proved her wrong by holding her serve at 5-4. Mauresmo was left to serve for the match, which she did, 2-6, 6-3, 6-4, in two hours and three minutes.

As she was presented the trophy, the Venus Rosewater Dish, she told the Centre Court crowd in jest “I don’t want anybody to talk about my nerves any more.”

Justine Henin-Hardenne and Amelie Mauresmo secured their respective places in the women’s singles final round on Saturday after dispatching their respective opponents, Henin-Hardenne, the third seed, against her compatriot, second seed Kim Clijsters, while French top seed Amelie Mauresmo, against Russian fourth seed Maria Sharapova. This will be the second time that Mauresmo and Henin-Hardenne will dispute a singles grandslam title, the first having been at the Australian Open where Amelie Mauresmo won.

Amelie Mauresmo overcame Maria Sharapova’s barrage of shots and her trademark shrieks to advance into the final round of Wimbledon. While both women started the first set locked in battle for dominance, Sharapova double faulted and lost her steam to hand the first set to Mauresmo, 6-4. In the second set, it was Sharapova’s turn to punish Mauresmo with non-returnable shots and excellent volley returns from Sharapova who never missed her shots, although her shrieks were a bit louder than in the first set. Add to that, Mauresmso’s serve declined rapidly, and she made double faults contributing to Sharapova’s triumph in the second set, 6-3, forcing a deciding third set. Maria fought hard to be in the final round, but she was hounded with a soaring number of unforced errors. Mauresmo, on the other hand, regained her strength. After a strong opposition from Sharapova, Mauresmo took the third set, 6-2. The game lasted for two hours and thirteen minutes.

Justine Henin-Hardenne, in the other semi-final match, edged compatriot Kim Clijsters in just ninety minutes, 6-4, 7-6(7-4). In the first set, Henin-Hardenne had some jitters as she hade more double faults. She then compensated for those by attacking the net boldly. It worked for her. Clijsters, on the other hand, was besieged with backhand errors, which made it easy for Henin-Hardenne to finish the first set at 6-4 in only thirty-eight minutes. Clijsters went on to take a 2-1 lead in the second set, hoping to push the game into a third deciding set. Henin-Hardenne upped her game then level score to 3-3. The fierce battle ensued with Clijsters leading the score at 6-5, and then Clijsters dropped her serve to force a tiebreaker. Henin-Hardenne grabbed the chance to seal the match in two sets by winning the tiebreaker, 7-4, and the match, 6-4, 7-6(7-4). Henin-Hardenne’s win over Clijsters had increased her head-to-head career wins to 12-10.

Henin-Hardenne leads in career head-to-head wins over Mauresmo at 5-4.

Wimbledon is known for the following things: Strawberries, lots of rain, a dead still but great crowd, a struggling Tim Henman and the US Americans who basically roll their way through the first week. So how surprising is it that world number 62 Shenay Perry was the only American left in the draw even though the quarterfinals had not started yet?

When Andre Agassi stepped off court after his 3rd round loss to Spain´s Rafael Nadal, everyone knew that this would have been the last time that the multiple Grand Slam winner set a foot on the holy grass on Wimbledon´s Center Court. Prior to the tournament the American had announced the end of his career which will find its end at the US Open.

Agassi´s retirement announcement caused a worldwide outcry but it was only after the first week of Wimbledon that the US is starting to feel that something big is coming up: Who is able to carry on the American dominance in tennis they once enjoyed? Jaws dropped Saturday when title defender Venus Williams crashed out to young Serbian Jelena Jankovic in the 3rd round, losing an intense but unforced error marked match 6-7 6-4 4-6. The disappointment could not even settle in properly as the next huge American ´favourite´, Andy Roddick – twice a runner-up – fell to Andy Murray in straight sets. The US´ new top player James Blake lost early already, Mardy Fish got ill and had to withdraw and there is no American woman who could have made an impact anyway besides Venus Williams (there is still another Williams though but no one knows where she is).

Whereas the US has a lot to worry about, there are the usual suspects who actually are able to move through the draw without much effort and furore. For once there is Roger Federer who was awarded with a terrible draw including a first round clash with Richard Gasquet who had just won a warm-up tourney on grass in Nottingham. 6-3 6-2 6-2 was the result of that opener. The Swiss is cruising so far and it does not seem like anyone can stop him.

On the other hand Federer´s biggest enemy, Rafael Nadal is playing his best grass tournament at the moment. Not only did the lefty beat Agassi but he advanced to the 4th round for the very first time in his young career with wins over two Americans and one Brit, players who are usually superior on the fast grass courts. Is Nadal able to continue his great fighting spirit at SW19? That is for sure one of the most interesting questions for the second week. His chances look pretty good, that´s for sure.

Besides Venus´ early loss which some journalists called a ´shock exit´ (hers and Roddick´s losses are not shocking in my opinion), Miss Swiss Martina Hingis´ and Svetlana Kuznetsova´s defeats are the most impressive ones. Both Belgians Kim Clijsters and Justine Henin-Hardenne are on cruise control as they have reached the quarterfinals without dropping a set. Much more interesting though are their respective opponents: Clijsters will meet Na Li and Henin-Hardenne plays Severine Bremond next. Now those are real surprises. With the way the Belgians are playing so far, it´s a safe bet to expect an all-Belgian semifinal.

In the upper half of the draw the quarterfinalists have been concluded on Monday: Anastasia Myskina who seems to have finally found her smart game again has also yet to lose a set. However her next opponent will be Amelie Mauresmo, another player who has not had to play long matches yet. It is a rematch of last year´s quarterfinal but due to Myskina´s recent form, it might be a closer encounter than in 2005. Maria Sharapova who had some trouble in her 4th round match against Italian Flavia Pennetta whom she beat in three sets is looking for a quarterfinal spot against fellow Russian Elena Dementieva. The cactus loving blonde was looking on the verge of defeat in her first round matches but improved in her recent matches.

The second week of Wimbledon might come up with a few more surprises. For sure it is going to be pretty interesting.