Roger Federer dominating the TV in Kuantan

As you may or may not know, we love Roger Federer here. He has been dominating our TV for the last week and a half, and we are absolutely thrilled that he's made his 10th consecutive Australian Open semi-final! That's incredible!

Roger Federer beat Jo-Wilfried Tsonga 7/6, 4/6, 7/6, 3/6, 6/3 in the quarter finals of the Australian Open

Our house has been full of screams and shouts and "C'mons" mixed with frenzied excitement and palpable tension. Nothing beats tennis!

So my Roger Federer blog has been very active over the past several days. Please go over and check it out! (Andy Murray fans are also welcome!)

Blog Flashbacks

It's the weekend and it's raining lightly this morning after a week of beautiful hot weather. We've all woken up with runny noses!

To start off the flashbacks today I'm referring you to a post in January 2011 and my talented friend's artwork in accordance with Chinese New Year (CNY):

CNY art

The Australian Open has now reached the finals and I was so sad to see my mate Roger Federer lose to Rafael Nadal in the semi-finals the other night. So in the second part of our flashbacks, we go back two years to January 2010 where Federer destroyed Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the semi-finals, en route to winning the tournament by beating Andy Murray in the final.

Federer wins Aussie Open semi 2010

Abstract Samples

The last several days I've been experimenting with abstract photography once more. It seems to be a very rewarding field.

Yesterday the Australian Open began in Melbourne too, and I enjoyed watching Roger Federer progress from the first round. He's so smooth and professional. Australians will be sad to see home favourite Sam Stosur eliminated just an hour ago in the first round. That was a real surprise.

Today I'm sharing some of my recent abstract photography work. Tell me if you like it . . .

Have a great day. I'm pleased to announce that the sun has returned and the rains disappeared in Kuantan. That makes me happy!

Roger Federer sent me mail!

Can you imagine my delight when I discovered mail in my post box from Roger Federer?!

The letter was found yesterday, complete with Swiss stamps, picture of Roger Federer and postal marks from his hometown Bottmingen.

Roger Federer is a tennis superstar, the best player to have ever played the game, with 70 tournament wins and with 16 major titles (more than any other male player ever), the greatest of all time. He is currently ranked as number three player in the world and is preparing for the Australian Open, which begins on 16th January.

I've been following his tennis career since mid-2004.

I wrote Roger a letter in mid-December 2011, which I'd been meaning to do for quite some time, and boy am I glad I did! I didn't expect any sort of reply. He's a very busy man with a wife and two daughters in addition to his professional tennis commitments.

The letter contained two postcard pictures of Roger Federer, autographed by the man himself. I must admit, I screamed when I took the letter out of the post box! That was a great moment :)

As you can see, I was considerably ecstatic for the rest of the day. I'm framing the two postcards and envelope and I'll be writing him again after the Australian Open.

Roger Federer sent me mail! He's my friend. He's a top man.

Happenings on this day of Tuesday 18th January, 2011

So I had a tuition class this morning for an hour after another struggle to get out of bed. These last few nights I've slept very comfortably and I've had to fight myself out of bed for my morning classes. Thankfully, the bed eventually lost after half-hour epic battles!

The Australian Open tennis has started and is on channel 813 all day every day, so that is a dominant force now and will be for these coming two weeks. Yesterday I watched my favourite player Roger Federer, win an easy first round match, and my favourite women's player, Justine Henin, fight out a great comeback to beat a bullish Sania Mirza. Champions always find a way to win. Today, Nadal didn't drop a single game before his opponent retired with a knee injury in the 2nd set. Ana Ivanovic suffered a setback with an epic loss in the first round, going down 8-10 in an incredible final set. I'm just getting ready to watch Lleyton Hewitt slug it out with David Nalbandian.

This morning we went to Klinik Gambut for Fie's check-up. I was most appalled by the standard of the toilets. In a place where good health and hygiene are advised, where pregnant women and newborn babies visit, the dirty, smelly toilets are an absolute disgrace. The men's toilet at the adjoining dental clinic was unclean, wet, and had a pungent smell like those public toilets one encounters on highways. Trying to help my daughter use the toilet there was a horrible moment. There was no toilet paper, I wouldn't fancy handling the hose which was wet with who knows what type of fluid all over it, and the sink was small and dirty with a filthy mirror hanging above it. My wife had to use the ladies toilet at the clinic and reported that it was dirty and the toilet wouldn't flush! Of all places, I would have never imagined this in a health centre!! I am amazed that such atrocities can exist!

I had pancakes for lunch, made by myself, with a squeeze of lemon and sprinkling of sugar. I do feel like a good bowl of pasta now though, with cream cheese sauce.

While waiting at the clinic, Fie whipped out her trendy Zenith Hotel notebook and I began teaching Lauren the alphabet. She can correctly identify almost all 26 of the letters, but finds little motivation to count numbers. 

Looks like she'll be taking on English, just like her daddy!

Men's Singles Final - Day 14

Roger Federer     6     6     7(13)

Andy Murray       3     4     6(11)

The mountainous differences between the two finalists was a glaring advantage to the Swiss in this men's singles final. 15 Grand Slams to Murray's none. It was just Murray's second appearance in a Grand Slam final while Federer was experiencing his 22nd such final. Did anyone really ever think that Murray could overcome all this experience in his opponent's favour? We remember the recent US Open final where Del Potro did just that to upset the great man in five sets. And Murray had been in great form in his six matches en route to the final, sweeping aside his challengers, although each one bar Cilic was of questionable talent and ability.

Federer had a tricky first round encounter with Igor Andreev, but improved with each match, completely annhiliating Lleyton Hewitt, Nikolay Davydenko and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga with superb tennis.

The pair of them exchanged early breaks before Federer broke decisively in the 8th game to serve out the set.

In the second set, Murray's serve was collapsing under 74 years of pressure for a British Grand Slam winner. His serve was broken early in the set and he was forced to save numerous break points as the Swiss waited for the kill. Federer's serve in contrast, was working like clockwork. A rocket forehand, two aces and an easy volley in the eighth game took just 59 seconds. He soon held serve once again to take a two sets lead. At this moment, Murray's fragile chances of winning narrowed even further.

Murray was far too predictable with the bulk of his passing shots going to the Federer backhand. Murray had identified that as Federer's weaker side, yet it proved to be the shot which time and again opened up the court for the Swiss master to win point after point. And Murray was rattled. There was no Plan B whatsoever from the Scot's racquet. The problem with Murray is that there is no special shot in his armoury which can continually hurt an opponent. His serve breaks down when under pressure, so does his rallying ability for which he is famed.

The third set went well for Murray as he burst into a 5-2 lead, breaking Federer as he was serving at 2-3, and holding to get himself one game away from the set. But it was in his next service game where it all went wrong. Federer was going to win this championship, and he wasn't even allowing the Scot a single set to enjoy. Federer produced the most brilliant cross-court return winner which flashed past the advancing Murray in a blur to set up break point. Murray managed to reach deuce, but Federer conjured up a wonderful clipped backhand pass on the stretch after hanging on to the point by the skin of his teeth, only for Murray to net the volley at his feet. Another Murray effort went into the net and Federer was back in the set, and soon it was a tiebreak.

The following 24 points were as tense as you could get with set points and championship points being saved with gutsy tennis. But it was Murray who was tiring, his footwork becoming laboured and heavy. Meanwhile, Federer was gliding like a gazelle around the blue asphalt. Murray passed up no less than five set points in the tiebreaker, most notably a simple forehand at 6-5 with Federer out of the court, only to hear the dreaded sound of the bottom of the tape rip his final hopes of a comeback apart. The pressure was too much and a simple forehand became a burden too great to bear.

At 9-8 to Murray we witnessed one of the most incredible rallies as both players scrapped for the point, hitting the lines both left and right, spectators' hands covering their mouths in one gasp after another. It finally ended with a Murray lob wide. Federer then came up with an astonishingly sublime drop volley to set up a second championship point. Murray then raced for another drop shot and passed the ball delicately up the line. Federer left it but it agonisingly dropped inside the baseline.

10-10 became 11-11. Federer produced a magnificent forehand winner wrong-footing an absolutely shattered Murray, and on his 3rd championship point, Murray netted a tired backhand and it was all over. Federer came up with the magic when needed. He just doesn't feel the pressure. He had Murray, six years his junior, all over the court and by the end the poor Scot had been run ragged and was shattered.

Another absolute master class from the super tactician, physical specimen, astounding magician and King of tennis. It is his first Grand Slam as a father, and based on this form, there will be many more to come. And Andy Murray may just have to wait several more years for his turn to lift a big trophy. Because as long as the daddy is ruling, the tears will keep flowing for Murray.

Women's Singles Final - Day 13

Serena Williams     6     3     6

Justine Henin         4     6     2

Serena raced into a 4-1 lead at the start of this final between two multiple Grand Slam champions. However, Henin responded with the next three games to level at 4-4. But the tiny Belgian, who struggled with her serve all match, dropped serve at 4-5 to forfeit the opening set.

In the second set Henin played at a higher level and scored decisive breaks in the 3rd, 7th and 9th games as she got to grips with the American's big serve. But Serena, the champion that she is, extinguished all hopes of a comeback Slam for Henin as Serena powered her way through the 3rd set to claim her 12th Grand Slam, tying her with legend Billie Jean King.

For Henin, it was a remarkable feat to be in the final showpiece itself, and she can only get fitter, better and more match-sharp in the tournaments ahead. As a small consolation, my favourite match of the entire two weeks was henin's fantastic match with Elena Dementieva in the second round where she produced some stunning tennis to win a long, close battle.

Federer obliterates sorry Tsonga - Day 12

Roger Federer rolled back the years in delivering an absolutely scintillating performance in demolishing Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in straight sets, 6-2, 6-3, 6-2 to make it to his 18th Grand Slam final in the last 19 events.

Federer broke Tsonga in the 6th game of the first set to take the lead and broke again in the final game as he gave away just five unforced errors. The second set followed the same pattern as Rog broke the Frenchman in the 6th game of the set and an outrageous forehand down the line helped him consolidate his break for a 5-2 lead. Two games later and it was two sets to love for the Swiss champion in under an hour.

Federer was like a sniper in this semi-final, going for the kill at every opportunity, and displaying the grace of a gazelle in all of his lethal execution. And it didn't take him long in the third set to gain the upper hand. Federer produced a glorious backhand overhead volley and three points later he had broken the beleagured Tsonga again and the end was drawing rapidly near.

A Tsonga double fault gave Federer a double break in his next service game and the Swiss marched into a 5-1 lead, shortly wrapping up the match in under an hour and a half.

There was a reverential silence around the Rod Laver arena as this champion utilised all of his skills to the utter detriment of Tsonga who looked on helplessly as the spectators sat in awe. The biggest gasp came when Federer shanked a forehand in the third set. Even the commentators were at a loss for words. "I wonder who'll change the nappies tonight?" was the best Alan Wilkins came up with. And after yet another glorious winner from Federer's racquet, Vijay Amritraj apologised, "I'm sorry to be gasping so much, because I don't have any more words to say! It's just a gasp."

Having taught Tsonga a severe lesson on the court, the great Swiss master then taught him a valuable lesson off court by humbly waiting for the Frenchman to gather his belongings so they could walk off the court together, shoulder to shoulder in equality. This big-headed, arrogant Frenchman could do with taking note as he usually takes no thought for his opponent, being too occupied with promoting himself by pointing to his back whilst jumping around the court like some jack-in-a-box. I'm grateful that I didn't have to bear watching that awful celebration again.

Federer's post-match interview was just as colourful as his on-court display. He was clearly delighted to have won this match so convincingly and smiled vividly as he related his best memories of 2009 and his analysis of Sunday's final with Murray. He had the crowd in stitches when, asked by Jim Courier about Andy Murray's Grand Slam hopes, he wiggled his hands mockingly in the air and said,"He'd like to win the first for British tennis in what is it, a hundred and fifty thousand years?!"

This semi-final demolition job was a clear message to Andy Murray to remind him of the task that awaits him in Sunday's final. For Federer is no mood to be lenient when it comes to Grand Slam finals.

Semi-final action - Day 11

Two contrasting women's semi-finals were played out on Thursday afternoon in Melbourne. Two unheralded Chinese players had the possibility of meeting in the final of the Grand Slam of Asia and the Pacific, but they were up against two champions of the game, in Serena Williams and Justine Henin.

First up was Li Na, who had beaten Venus to get here, and would have to beat sister Serena, the defending champion, to progress further. It was an extremely close match which was ultimately decided by two tiebreaks. Serena it was who played the bigger points better to emerge victorious, although Li Na has nothing to be ashamed of.

Then it was the turn of Zheng Jie to tackle the graceful terrier that is Justine Henin. In contrast to the first semi-final, this one was a no-contest as Zheng crumbled to the overwhelming force of the Belgian. Henin ran away with a 6-1, 6-0 scoreline and is looking good for a come-back Grand Slam triumph.

The first of the men's semi-finals was played in the night session between marathon man Marin Cilic and Briton Andy Murray. Cilic had contested 3 five-setters on his way to the last four whilst Murray had yet to drop a set en route to his penultimate match of the Open.

For the first set and a half, Cilic dominated, sweeping Murray from one side of the court to the other with some devastating forehands and gruelling rallies.

But Murray managed to hang in there, and as Cilic began to tire, Murray gained greater control, hitting winners from all over the court. Murray will now compete in just his 2nd Grand Slam final on Sunday, but will he be facing Federer or Tsonga? Their showdown begins in around five hours' time.

Semi-final match-ups

Serena Williams     vs     Li Na

Justine Henin     vs     Zheng Jie

Marin Cilic     vs     Andy Murray

Roger Federer     vs     Jo-Wilfried Tsonga

Back from the dead - Day 10

Serena Williams' torrid start to her quarter-final with Victoria Azarenka which saw her a set and 4-0 down in the 2nd, almost condemned her to a humiliating defeat. She later admitted that she thought about returning home by Friday - but something seemed to click as she went on from that perilous position to win 12 of the next 15 games to stun her Belarussian opponent into submission. The final score read 4-6, 7-6, 6-1 to Serena and she was just thankful to have risen from the dead and still remain in the competition.

Azarenka was the overwhelmingly better player for a set and a half, and she must have wondered how on earth the match slipped from her grasp. Serena is famed as a fighter who never gives up the ghost and she demonstrated her battling qualities most admirably in front of a rapturous Rod Laver arena crowd.

The American was not the only one flirting with disaster on the Rod Laver arena. Swiss champion Roger Federer, playing after that ladies' singles contest, looked lethargic and completely vacant of ideas as he gave away the first set 6-2 with a flurry of errors from his racquet. After taking an unusually early bathroom break, he found himself behind again, this time dangerously trailing 1-3 in the 2nd. The Federer camp was worried, Mirka appeared to be having a migraine. But as soon as the sunlight disappeared from the court as afternoon turned into evening, Federer quickly clicked into gear and amazingly won the next 13 straight games to stun Davydenko and race into a commanding lead. He restricted the Russian to a measly 7 points in the entire 3rd set, such was Federer's domination.

The momentum had swung briskly and although Davydenko thwarted Federer's efforts to serve for the match at 5-4 with some remarkable returns and winners, the Swiss broke back immediately and made no mistake at the second time of asking. Nikolay Davydenko mentioned how he now believes he can beat Federer - but believing is one thing, actually transferring that faith into reality is an entirely different proposition.

The Swiss master has sent out a warning - his 2-6, 6-3, 6-0, 7-5 triumph over the No.1 in-form player in the world should have rivals questioning their supposed belief in gaining his scalp. The best it seems they could hope for, is for the Sun to hang over centre court after hours, and that's asking for the impossible. Roger Federer has most certainly not finished yet.

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, in his match with 3rd seed Novak Djokovic, traded tiebreaks before losing the 3rd set, a 6-1 scoreline in favour of the Serbian. However, as Djokovic began to wilt with a stomach complaint and physical exhaustion, Tsonga looked as fresh in the 5th as he did in the 1st. The Frenchman prevailed 7-6, 6-7, 1-6, 6-3, 6-1. But he will need more than fitness when he takes on Federer in the semis.

Li Na made it two Chinese ladies in the Australian Open semi-finals when she came back from the brink to eliminate Venus Williams. A set down and with the American serving for the match, Li Na hung on, hitting some wonderful groundstrokes, and eventually came through a close final set to join compatriot Zheng Jie in the last four.

Henin motors on - Day 9

Seven-time Grand Slam champion and returning hero, Justine Henin, beat giant-killer Nadia Petrova in a close quarter-final in which the Belgian came through 7-6, 7-5. The "Roger Federer of women's tennis", as Todd Woodbridge labelled her, is looking better with each match, and will face Chinese Zheng Jie, who beat Maria Kirilenko, for a place in the final.

Andy Roddick got awfully lucky in his last 16 match with Fernando Gonzalez when the most outrageous umpiring decision saw Mr. Molina fail to replay a challenged point when the Chilean had a shot on the questioned ball. Roddick  was resultingly awarded the point, which just happened to be game point, break point and set point at a crucial moment in the match.

He wasn't so lucky against Cilic, when after coming back from two sets down, the young Croat blew him away 6-3 in the fifth.

The amazing run of Marin Cilic has seen him conquer Stanislas Wawrinka, Juan Martin Del Potro and now Andy Roddick, en route to his first Grand Slam semi-final.

There, he will meet Andy Murray who was on top of Nadal from the start, taking the first set 6-3 and then winning the 2nd set tiebreak in a largely impressive performance against the second best player in the world. Murray had an answer to everything Nadal came up with, and with the Briton leading 3-0 in the third, the Spaniard conceded the match, being troubled with yet another knee injury which flared up in the 2nd set.

However, Murray should be cautious of the dangerously impressive Cilic, who could yet spring another surprise at Melbourne Park.

Magical show from Federer - Day 8

Roger Federer made it into the quarter finals of the Australian Open 2010 with his 15th straight victory over Lleyton Hewitt with a magical display in front of the Aussie crowd. He thrilled his fans with winner after winner, one sensational shot after another, forehand crosscourt, forehand up the line, backhand crosscourt and backhand up the line. And it wasn't that Hewitt played poorly - he gave everything he had - he just ran into Federer in invincible form.

He next faces Davydenko, who himself is on a 13-match winning streak, but if he can duplicate the sort of performance he put on against Hewitt, he will surely be progressing to a 23rd consecutive Grand Slam semi-final. There were moments in the match where the Swiss took one's breath away with a stunning array of shots and winners, the elegance with which he did so, and the ridiculous backhand winners that were made to look so easy.

GO ROG!

A tennis feast! - Day 7

Marin Cilic and Juan Martin Del Potro put on a monumental show of big hitting in this fourth round match in which the scoreline swung back and forth throughout. I am absolutely delighted and relieved to tell you that the beast Del Potro was beaten, Cilic winning this marathon, 5-7, 6-4, 7-5, 5-7, 6-3. Del Potro was a huge threat to Federer should he have reached the final.

Current Australian Open champion Rafael Nadal faced off against giant-serving Croat Ivo Karlovic in a close encounter. Nadal took the opener only for Karlovic to level in the next set. But nadal began reading the Croat's serve and was totally on top by the fourth set. He won 6-4, 4-6, 6-4, 6-4.

Nadia Petrova continued her giant-killing act as she powered past 3rd seed Svetlana Kuznetsova in three sets, the final score reading 6-3, 3-6, 6-1.

Belgian maestro Justine Henin came up against young compatriot Yanina Wickmayer. The youngster had been the surprise package of last year's US Open, and after losing a first set tiebreak, she went on to race through the second set 6-1. But Henin, seven times Grand Slam champion, kept her cool and put on another great exhibition of her skills, winning the decider 6-3 to set up a quarter final with Petrova. As much as Henin insists it is a great physical challenge for her after missing the last couple of years on tour, she nevertheless looks like she's never been away.

In the first match of the day, Andy Murray quite comfortably beat an inept John Isner in three straight sets. While the American has a serve to boast of, he possesses absolutely nothing else based on this performance, and was rather incapable of maintaining, let alone winning, a rally. Where does this leave Andy Murray? He has had four simple matches in which he hasn't been stretched in the least, and now he must be prepared to take on the second best player on the planet in Rafael Nadal. I think we will be seeing the Scot on a plane out of Melbourne in the very near future, perhaps on Tuesday.

Federer Sails into 4th round - Day 6

Roger Federer, the men's number one seed, made relatively light work of 31st seed Albert Montanes. Federer never really left middle gears as he saw off the Spaniard 6-3, 6-4, 6-4. He's going along nicely and will next meet Lleyton Hewitt after Baghdatis retired injured early in the second set.

Big-head, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga unfortunately beat Tommy Haas to advance into a quarter final meeting with Nicolas Almagro. Haas had served for the 4th set but was broken and subsequently lost the match.

There were no other major upsets in the mens or womens draw.

Petrova Pulverizes Poor Princess - Day 5

Nadia Petrova stunned the Rod Laver arena audience into silence as she dismantled reigning US Open princess Kim Clijsters, 6-0, 6-1. Clijsters played poorly throughout, but Petrova deserves credit for playing a magnificent match when it mattered most. Nothing seemed to go right for the Belgian and this is a big setback in her climb back into the top ten. For Nadia Petrova, she will now go into a match against Svetlana Kuznetsova in full confidence of causing another upset.

Kuznetsova was a set and a break down in her 3rd round match with qualifier Angelique Kerber, before battling her way to victory in 3 sets, the winning scoreline reading 3-6, 7-5, 6-4. Sweating profusely, she showed why she is a Grand Slam champion by turning around this match as it was beginning to slip away.

In the mens draw, Rafael Nadal encountered an intense match with German Philip Kohlschreiber, who was going for winners all over the court. Nadal fought out the first two sets, but Kohlschreiber's persistence was repayed when he pulled one back. However, Nadal also put on a powerful show and emerged with the victory in 4 sets to set up a clash with Giant Croat Ivo Karlovic.

Andy Roddick and Fernando Gonzalez both won and will meet in a mouth-watering clash in the last 16. Andy Murray enjoyed another easy win and big-serving American, John Isner, overcame the charismatic Gael Monfils of France. Murray and Isner will meet in the last 16 in what should be the Scot's first big test in Melbourne.

Sadly, Britain's Elena Baltacha came to the end of the road when she was comprehensively beaten by Dinara Safina, who herself has been quietly making her way through the draw, as she looks for her first Grand Slam title.