Federer Celebrates Birthday In Style
Locker Room
August 9, 2014
Roger Federer seemed inspired by Toronto fans who sang “Happy Birthday” during the coin toss before his quarter-final against David Ferrer. He is 33 now, yet Federer marked the occasion in style with a 6-3, 4-6, 6-3 victory over the plucky Spaniard.
‘At 33 it’s a dream come true to be playing tennis at this level,’ Roger said later. ‘I have two titles this year and I hope to win more. ‘The Canadian crowd will be on Federer’s side when he takes on Feliciano Lopez, who conquered home favourite Milos Raonic 6-4, 6-7, 6-3. In the other semi-final, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga will play Grigor Dimitrov.
Tsonga sizzled against a doubt-filled Andy Murray and notched up more than twice as many winners in a 7-6, 4-6, 6-4 victory. However, the Scot had his chances and led 3-0 in the final set. He squandered that advantage and still doesn’t seem sufficiently sharp psychologically to win tournaments. Murray’s partnership with new coach Amelie Mauresmo must now be called into question. They have one more tournament in Cincinnati to get things right before the US Open.
Expect a Dimitrov v Federer final in Toronto after the Bulgarian boyfriend of Maria Sharapova saw off South Africa’s Kevin Anderson 5-7, 7-5, 7-6 (8-6) in a nail-biting finish.
Yet the generous Canadian crowd will be hoping for a dream Federer v Tsonga final. And they might just be able to lift the entertaining Frenchman to greater heights to earn that wish.
Federer, who has a 10-0 record against Lopez, is still the big story though. He stands on the verge of more glory. And no one in the tennis world would begrudge him that success if the 33-year-old birthday boy, who ate cake with the Toronto crowd last night, satisfies his hunger to go all the way
Want to see the all-time-greats and new sensations at Wimbledon next summer? You can book now and savour the prospect for months to come!