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Pro Sports
History awaits Federer Routs Ancic en route to possible 6th straight Wimbledon crown By Stephen Wilson | AP Sports Writer WIMBLEDON, England -- Roger Federer won't be satisfied with winning his sixth consecutive Wimbledon championship. He expects to be chasing more titles for another decade. Federer has reached the semifinals for the 17th consecutive time at a Grand Slam event, and is two wins away from becoming the second man in history to lift the Wimbledon trophy six years in a row. "I'll have a chance to win this tournament for the next five or 10 years, you know," the 26-year-old Swiss star said Wednesday. "I think my game's made for grass. My dream is to not only win this year, but many more years to come." All the pre-tournament talk that Federer was more vulnerable this year evaporated as he cruised into the final four without dropping a set, taking his winning streak at Wimbledon to 39 matches and 64 overall on grass. Federer played a nearly flawless match Wednesday to beat Mario Ancic, the last man to beat him on grass -- in the first round of Wimbledon in 2002. He served 15 aces, won 61 of 71 points on serve and never faced a break point in a 6-1, 7-5, 6-4 victory. "I really feel like I'm playing as good as the last few years," Federer said. "I've been playing very consistent, been moving great. This is obviously a perfect situation looking at the semis." That's where Federer will face a resurgent Marat Safin, a former No. 1 and two-time Grand Slam champion who used to detest playing at Wimbledon and is down at No. 75 in the ATP rankings. Federer leads Safin 8-2 in career meetings, including a straight-set victory in the third round at the All England Club last year. At the 2005 Australian Open, Safin came from two sets down to beat Federer in the semifinals and went on to win his second major title, after his 2000 U.S. Open crown. "I never looked at Marat like No. 80 or 90 in the world," Federer said. "I mean, that's ridiculous. He knows that himself. He's finally showing again what he can do. It's just quite surprising he does it here at Wimbledon." "You win four matches and now you're starting to challenge Federer?" he said. "I'm playing semifinals, but that doesn't mean I have a chance there, because the guy has won how many times here already? To beat Federer you need to be (Rafael) Nadal and run around like a rabbit and hit winners from all over the place. "It's another chance for me. But I think it's just a little bit too difficult for me to beat him." Slowed by injuries and erratic play, Safin has slipped steadily in the rankings over the last three years. "I'm tired of making comebacks every year," he said. "It's annoying, but that's my career. That's my life for the good and for the bad. But I'm climbing back. I want to climb back to the top 20. That's my goal right now." The women's semifinals were set for Thursday, with Venus and Serena Williams favored to set up their first all-sibling final since 2003 Wimbledon. Defending champion and four-time winner Venus was due up first against Elena Dementieva, while Serena was paired against Zheng Jie, the first Chinese player to make a Grand Slam semifinal. Just as impressive as Federer in the top half of the draw has been No. 2 Nadal in the bottom section, as the two rivals head toward a probable third straight Wimbledon final. Playing what he described as one of his best grass-court matches, the Spaniard never faced a break point and overwhelmed Andy Murray 6-3, 6-2, 6-4. "I am doing a lot of things better than last year," said Nadal, bidding to become the first man to win the French Open and Wimbledon in the same year since Bjorn Borg in 1980. "Slice better. The position on court, I felt like this is better. Playing more aggressive with the forehand all the time, and the backhand is feeling well, too." Nadal won't find out his semifinal opponent until Thursday, when 94th-ranked Rainer Schuettler and No. 145 Arnaud Clement resume their match at one set apiece. Schuettler won the first 6-3 and Clement took the second 7-5 when play was suspended due to fading light on Court 1. Murray, who came off a stirring five-set comeback win over Richard Gasquet in the quarterfinals, was no match for Nadal, ending Britain's perennial hopes of its first male Wimbledon winner since 1936. Murray believes Nadal now has the grass-court game to dethrone Federer. "He's definitely closer to him this year than he was," Murray said. "If he plays that well and returns like that, I think he's very close to being the favorite to win in this tournament. I think he's got a very, very good chance of winning."
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