Federer beats Blake to reach semifinals

New York—Beaten on yet another amazing shot by Roger Federer, James Blake shouted across the net Thursday night. “You’re too good!” he called out. Federer looked every bit the best player on the planet, turning back Blake and tuning out a partisan crowd for a 7-6 (7), 6-0, 6-7 (9), 6-4 victory at the U.S. Open that put him into a record-tying 10th consecutive Grand Slam semifinal.

“The score says it all. The match could have been easier. Could have been tougher,” the top-seeded Federer said. “It turned out to be a thriller.”

Sure, the fifth-seeded Blake became the first player to win a set from Federer in the tournament. And after going 0-12, Blake finally won a set against him.

Still, it wasn’t nearly enough to derail Federer’s bid for a third straight Open title.

“Did his heart rate ever go up above about 60?” Blake said. “He doesn’t look too worried to me.”

Federer next plays Saturday against No. 7 Nikolay Davydenko, who rallied to beat No. 14 Tommy Haas 4-6, 6-7 (3), 6-3, 6-4, 6-4. In the other semi, No. 9 Andy Roddick takes on unseeded Mikhail Youzhny.

“I’d probably like to play Andy, I guess, but (we’re) not quite there yet,” Federer said. “We look like the big favorites, but we’ve seen what happens to favorites sometimes, so we have to be careful.”

In Friday’s marquee matchup, No. 1 Amelie Mauresmo faces No. 3 Maria Sharapova in the women’s semifinals. They’ll play after No. 2 Justine Henin-Hardenne takes on No. 19 Jelena Jankovic.

Also on court: Martina Navratilova, in what could be her final pro tournament. The retiring great will team with Bob Bryan in the mixed doubles semifinals after winning Thursday.—AFP