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Today’s tennis watching generation must feel luckier than the ones of the past and perhaps than the ones of the future too. To watch two of the best players of the current times playing against each other, trying to become the greatest of all times is an experience in itself. Australian Open 2009 final was one such incident.

Swiss heart throb Roger Federer has already won 13 grand slams and needs just one to join the great Sampras at the top of the list and than just one more to become the winner of maximum grand slams ever.

Spanish sensation Rafael Nadal proved last year that he’s god not just on the clay court by winning French and Wimbledon in a single year, done by anyone after a gap of 28 years since Bjorn Borg accomplished the feat in 1980.

Last year the two met twice in slam finals with the similar outcomes, Nadal demolishing the FedEx. The latter also lost his top ranking to the former eventually.

2009 had started with more such encounters expected between the two kings and they didn’t disappoint their fans by advancing to the final of the opening Grand Slam of the year, Australian Open.

What a match it turned out to be! As equally good players as they both are so were their performances in the first four sets. The honours of the match were shared equally till the last set, which eventually became the final of the final. Incidentally it was the first five set final in 21 years. The final set was more of an anti-climax, though.

There was a lot at stake and record keepers were waiting to update their books with fingers crossed. The end result had Nadal as the first Spanish winner at the Australian Open and holder of three unique slams simultaneously after a long time. Interesting, the last guy to have done this and even better was the presenter of the winner’s trophy, the legendry Rod Lever in 1969. Federer has a losing record to Nadal in the Grand Slam finals and it seems as if the Spaniard is Federer’s cryptonite. Whether it has something to do with Nadal’s power, obviously a result of his strength training on machines like the Nautilus NS300 multi-gym, or if it is simply mental, Federer remains unable to solve the mystery of Nadal. Of course, Federer shouldn’t dismay and he needs to stay confident if he is to beat the Spaniard in the future.

Serena Williams, the nine times Grand Slam winner and second seed, takes on Dinara Safina, the number three seed, in one of the most eagerly anticipated Australian Open finals in recent times. The stakes are really high for the finals, as along with the trophy, the winner would also move atop the singles rankings.

The 22-year old Safina, the younger sister of enigmatic men’s former world number one, Marat Safin who is also a former Australian Open champion, in particular is really excited as she believes that it is just the opportunity that she has been looking for. The player who idolizes her brother and considerers her hero, said that she has her eyes fixed on the number one ranking for the time she was a teenager, and it would be a icing on the cake if she manages to win the Championship.

Her opponent in the final is however no pushover, in fact far from it, as Serena is widely acknowledged as the most feared player in the women’s circuit. And in addition she has a wealth of experience when it comes to playing Slam finals as well; winning a major percentage of them, which interestingly Safina lacks, a factor that may decide the fate of the match.

Serena can also draw strength from Safina’s apparent mental weakness that has been a bane of her still budding tennis career. Safina famously lost her way in last year’s French Open final to Ana Ivanovic, after playing some inspiring tennis in the earlier rounds. Hopefully for Safina her tendency  to crack under pressure does not reappear during the match and manages to play efficient tennis in her Adidas Barricade womens tennis shoes. Meanwhile, the bookies seem to have no difficulty in picking the winner as they have earmarked Serena as the run-away favourite.

By the time Pete Sampras won his record breaking 14th Grand Slam title at the US Open in 2002, there was a common perception that this record is here to stay. There were many reasons, with most of them quite logical, that accounted for this assumption. The ones that really weighed this principle of thought were that to break or even tie this record, the player that follows Sampras would has to be terribly consistent, dedicated, and above all supremely talented. Moreover, he has to maintain these traits over an extended period of time which in today’s outrageously competitive era looks highly improbable. Even Sampras was convinced that the record would stand the test of time, or would last a couple of decades at the least!

But the unexpected has happened, and the one who is on the threshold of doing the improbable is non other than the mercurial Swiss- Roger Federer, the man who has simply taken the game to an entirely different level-a level that is at time surrealistic. The man is barely 27, but has already won 13 Grand Slam titles, and is on way to equal Sampras’ record at this year’s Australian Open. The only remain barrier now between Federer and the record is Rafael Nadal, who incidentally holds a winning record, 4-2, against Federer in Slam finals. But if Federer does manage to edge him out, then he will go into the history books, and his racket and Nike Air Zoom Vapor shoes will also find themselves in the tennis hall of fame. In a recent interview with The Associated Press, Sampras acknowledged that he never expected his record to be broken, at least in such a short span. He was however quick to appreciate the efforts of Federer, saying that the player has it in him to raise the bar to 18 or 19 major championship titles, which will just close the door for other player in the near future.

Meanwhile, when asked to choose the favourite in the Australian Open final, he thought that Federer has a slight edge over his nemesis Rafael Nadal. But he also added that with Nadal you just cannot be too sure because he has that uncanny knack to floor you just when you think he is down and out.

Rafael Nadal, one of the favourites to win at this year’s Australian Open, has said that a win or loss in the seminal won’t matter that much to him, as it is certain that a Spaniard will reach the finals, what may. He was really ecstatic at the reality that two Spaniards have entered the semifinals, which means that one of them will play in the finals.

It is a different matter that Nadal is the odds-on favourite to reach the final, and in case Fernando Verdasco, the other semifinalist, wants to change that he has to lift his game a level or two given the form the unstoppable Nadal is currently in. Nadal is not only in peak physical form, which is obvious from the results of his strength training, but his confidence level and mental game is also in excellent condition. Nadal, said that it is an incredible thing to have two Spaniards face off against each other, and that they need to be happy whatever may be the outcome of their semi-final match. The hotly anticipated contest will thus see Nadal, who is unbelievingly yet to drop a set, pitted against his countryman Verdasco, who saw off last year’s finalist Jo-Wilfried Tsonga 7-6 (2), 3-6, 6-3, 6-2.

Meanwhile, Nadal as usual appeared to be in a mission as he defeated No. 6 Gilles Simon 6-2, 7-5, 7-5 on Wednesday as the temperature showed some respite coming down to 93 from a daytime high of 109 degrees. With the win Nadal has now improved one round on each of his previous four trips to Melbourne Park.

Last year Nadal was on course to become the first Spaniard to win the men’s title, but was bundled out by a rampaging Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the quarterfinals. That defeat has not yet healed, and best way to avenge that defeat is by winning the title, which Nadal believes he can.

I remember saying sometime back that when Serena plays to her potential there are hardly any players in the WTA tour that stand a chance of beating her. The Williams sisters are beyond doubt the most strongly built players in the WTA tour and consequently there is always the possibility of heir rivals being blown out of court. Just remember how they destroyed the magnificent talent called Martina Hingis. Such is their physical presence, and if we add to that the remarkable athletic ability and outstanding tenacity with the racquet they posses, you can safely say that the other women folk in the tour are real blessed that the William sisters prefer to take lengthy breaks from the tour, getting engaged in fashions, catwalk, et al!

The Williams show was on full display at the Rod Laver Arena on Thursday when Serena Williams dished out a master game to outwit, and at times out-think, her shell shocked opponent Elena Dementieva, 6-3, 6-4. It hardly mattered that Dementieva was in red hot coming into the semifinals, winning two back-to-back tournaments and looking for her first Grand Slam title, as Serena’s Wilson K racket was simply to much for her. With the win Serena moved within touching distance of claiming her 10th Grand Slam title and fourth in Australia. Serena should however thank the organizers, who decided to close the roof as temperatures soared to 111 degrees, as it enabled her to play to her true potential, unlike in the earlier rounds when she was seen huffing and puffing for breath, and almost was on the verge of losing her match against Svetlana Kuznetsova.

Serena said that she was really hampered by the sweltering heat in the earlier rounds and the decision to bring in the roof is a good one. “The trying conditions prevented me from playing my best tennis in the earlier rounds, but today was a different thing all together as I was moving and hitting the ball superbly”, she added.

Andy Roddick is probably one of the most underrated players in the men’s game in the last decade or so. It is precisely why you don’t usually find his name doing the ranks when the bookies decide the favourites to win a championship. That part is still the same, and when the bookies were drawing their list of favourites for this year’s Australian Open, players like Andy Murray- he is yet to win a Grand Slam - topped the list! While Roddick, who is a former US Open Champion, and has played four finals as well finds himself languishing down the list.

Roddick’s Grand Slam record could have been much better but unfortunately his career happened to clash with that of Federer, the undisputed great of modern tennis.

Now that Roddick has reached the Australian Open semifinals where he is pitted against Federer. He gets a good opportunity to have a crack at the champion and he will have to be in top form in his Babolet trainers if he hopes to prevail. It definitely won’y be easy as Federer appears to be in ominous form destroying a helpless Juan Martin del Potro of Argentina 6-3, 6-0, 6-0 in the quarterfinals.

Roddick for his part got the better of defending champion Novak Djokovic, who apparently was undone by both the sweltering heat as well as the range of Roddick’s shots, and was trailing 6-7 (3), 6-4, 6-2, 2-1, before he finally retired.

This is the fourth time that Roddick has made it to the Australian semis, having made it in 2003, 2005 and 2007. That Roddick badly wants to break the shackles is easy to comprehend, but the problem is Federer- a player who hardly plays a mediocre game, especially in the slams. In fact Federer of late is being accused of losing his magical touch; and that despite making it to the semifinals for the 19th consecutive time! Ask more?

Jelena Dokic, who has a love-hate relationship with the Australian public, has not only managed to bridge the differences between them at this year’s championship, but in the process has also become their darling with both her attitude and newly rediscovered game. In fact the Australian public found in her someone whom they can wholeheartedly support, and are more than happy to leave behind the bitter sweet memories of the past when the player famously denounced her adopted land to play for the country of her birth. The defeat of their lone hope in the Championship Lleyton Hewitt in the first round helped in fuelling public imagination and restored Dokic firmly as a sentimental favourite. If one goes by the way the Australian public, who thronged the stadium to watch Dokic play and vociferously shows that the charisma and appeal that the player.

The player, 25, with proper PR management has real probability to establish herself along the lines of Jennifer Capriati, (do I need to elaborate that part?) one of the all time greats of the game. Moreover, with the gradual decline of Lleyton Hewitt, she is the most likely candidate to fill the void. She will have to get her mental game back on track, as her physical fitness appears quite good, and there is no need for her to work extra hard on a treadmill like Carl Lewis MOT 50 A, or anything. Neverthless, the player did lose her quarter final match against Dinara Safina, a real dogged player with steely determination, but not before giving a good fight 6-4, 4-6, and 6-4. The match played at the Rod Laver Arena, was witness to 15,000 partisan fans cheering for their player, and celebrating every point that she won.

But Dinara Safina, who is on track for her first Grand Slam title and a chance to become No. 1, kept her cool and came up triumph against her rival and her vociferous band of supporters. While speaking at the post-match conference Safina interestingly apologized to the Australians for defeating their countrywoman.

Andy Murray, the pre-tournament favourite, was sent packing in the fourth round by Fernando Verdasco in a nerve wracking five-setter played at centre court. The defeat also brought an end to all the hype and hysteria, partly created by the British media and bookies, surrounding the player and also brought his winning run to a grinding halt.

Given the favourite tag ahead of the likes of Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer and Djokovic, Murray was obviously under tremendous pressure to prove that he has truly arrived and that his recent victories over the top-two raked players were no fluke. But, unfortunately on Monday he found the No. 14 ranked Fernando Verdasco of Spain just too hot to handle, and in the process blew away a one-set lead, to accept defeat in a cliff-hanger 2-6, 6-1, 1-6, 6-3, 6-4. Murray’s cause was also undone by the fact that he missed many a crucial points and allowed his opponent to come back when he could easily have tightened the noose around his opponent.

Murray however refused to be demoralised by the defeat, though acknowledging that it truly hurts, especially when you are in such great shape. He instead took solace from his last appearance at the event; where he lost to eventual finalist Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the first round, but went on to have a great year capturing five titles. In other matches, top-seed Rafael Nadal, who wears similar Nike Air Max Breathe Cage tennis shoes to Andy, was as usual in his elements as he dismantled 2007 runner-up Fernando Gonzalez of Chile 6-3, 6-2, 6-4. The muscular bulldozer from Spain, who has tried a new full-sleeve attire for the event much to the dismay of his female fans, is yet to drop a set and it everybody’s guess that it will take a Herculean task to stop him from claiming his first crown Down Under.

Venus for once looked really out of sorts against a dogged opponent and finally lost heart and her game to make an ignominious second round exit at the Australian Open.

The seven time Grand Slam winner, a self proclaimed fashion designer, who had an injury ridden 2008, looked a pale shadow of herself at times and her patch play coupled with the increasing confidence of her opponent Carla Suarez Navarro, a 20-year-old Spaniard ranked No. 46 just proved too much for her as she bowed out 2-6, 6-3, 7-5. The Spaniard made good use of her strong forehand catching Venus off guard a number of times, as she went for broke.

Venus Williams, who is the reigning Wimbledon champion and was seeded sixth at the Open, spoke highly of her opponent and said that Navarro was the more consistent of the two and was playing a pretty aggressive brand of tennis that served her well. “While she was going confidently going for her shots, I was fruitlessly trying to get control of my game and the match”, Venus confided.

She also said that Navarro aggressive play forced her to play defensively, and that the accuracy of Navarro’s first shot percentage was too hot to handle. The match according to her was dictated by Navarro, and she was always playing catch up, she added. Moreover, since she is not normally a defensive player it eventually took a tool on her, she further added. Perhaps Venus requires more training and work with cardio machines like the Reebok T 3.1 treadmill, or perhaps she merely did have an off day. At any rate, her fans cannot wait until she returns to her former form, which will hopefully be sooner rather than later.

The defeat of Venus also laid to rest the possibility of a Williams vs. Williams showdown in the semifinals. Younger sister Serena, the second however safely moved into the second round with a fighting 6-3, 7-5 victory over Argentinean Gisela Dulko.

Serena Williams showed tremendous grit and determination to chalk out a straight set win over Gisela Dulko on Thursday to enter the third round of the Australian Open. The win would rank as one of the special moments of the tournament as it shows an apparently injured Serena grimacing in pain, but fighting hard for each point like a tigress and at times even fighting her own demons.

The match didn’t turn out to be as straight forward as Serena would have liked, she actually had to fend off six set points in the second set to prevent the match going to a third set. The game saw a lot of deuces as well, causing Serena to yell out in anguish.

That Serena was injured only complicated matters, and she was forced to undergo on court treatment on her left ankle. However, she brought an end to the drama and an end to her sufferings with an ace on her first match point, in a match that lasted 1 hour, 50 minutes.

Speaking at the post-match conference Serena said that Dulko was playing unbelievingly well in the second set, and was making some improbable winners all over the court. She also said that at one point of time she feared that she would lose the match, but Dulko failed to make good of some really genuine chances. She however emphasized that she is capable of playing much better than what she did against Dulko. Serena definitely needs to rest her ankle in preparation for the next match, and hopefully even undergo some soothing vibration treatment, with something like the Carl Lewis Fitness Vibro Exerciser, in order to reach 100%. Meanwhile, Elena Dementieva continued her impressive winning streak taking it to twelve with a 6-4, 6-1 win over Iveta Benesova, moving into the third round.