Mar 27, 2007 from Reuters:
MIAMI - Roger Federer suffered a stunning 7-6 2-6 7-6 defeat by Guillermo Canas in the Sony Ericsson Open fourth round on Tuesday, the world number one's second loss to the Argentine in successive tournaments.

Canas battled the Swiss defending champion for two hours 38 minutes in a riveting Stadium court duel that ended when the Argentine sealed victory with a service winner. Canas became just the fifth player to record back-to-back wins over Federer who lost only two hard court matches all last season.

After losing the opening set in a tiebreak 7-2, Federer appeared to finally find his rhythm, easily winning the second set and carrying the momentum into the third to break a fading Canas at the first opportunity to go ahead 2-0. But Canas refused to buckle under the Federer's pressure and leveling the set at 3-3.

Mar 26, 2007 from DPA:
MIAMI - Roger Federer advanced into the fourth round of the Miami Masters with a 7-5, 6-3 victory against Spaniard Nicolas Almagro on Monday.

The Swiss top seed, bidding to become the first player since Andre Agassi to win three consecutive titles in Miami, kept his cool while 21-year-old Almagro went into self-destruct mode. Almagro vented his frustration after losing on a computerized challenge, sending a ball nearly out of the stadium in anger but missing a warning from the chair.

The challenger grew more melancholy after dropping the 41-minute opening set on a double-fault while serving at 6-5, then going down an early break in the second. Almagro was able to get a break back but lost his serve again immediately to go down 3-1.

from ATP:
Before his third-round match Monday Roger Federer was presented with a record four awards as part of the 2006 ATP Awards. Federer received the Player of the Year award, the Stefan Edberg Sportsmanship award, the Arthur Ashe Humanitarian award and the ATPtennis.com Fans' Favorite award.

The Swiss finished No. 1 for the third straight year, highlighted by an ATP-best 12 titles (most in a season since Thomas Muster in 1995). Federer's haul included three Grand Slam crowns for the second time in three years and four ATP Masters Series shields for the second straight season. He became the first player in the Open Era (since 1968) to win at least 10 titles for three consecutive years and became only the fifth player since 1973 to end the year at No. 1 for at least three consecutive years. He was the first player to reach all four Grand Slam finals in a year since Rod Laver in 1969. Federer competed in 16 finals in 17 tournaments played and won a career-high 92 matches. He became the first player in history to surpass $8 million in a season. Won his third Tennis Masters Cup title.

Not only is he the best, but he's also the fairest. Federer has been voted by his peers as the Stefan Edberg Sportsmanship winner for the third consecutive year. Just two others players - Edberg (1988-90) and Patrick Rafter (1999-2001) - have won the award three consecutive years. (Edberg also won the award in 1992 and '95; Rafter won the first of his four awards in 1997).

For the fourth consecutive year Federer has won the ATPtennis.com Fans' Favorite Award. More than 40,000 fans voted online, with Federer receiving 10,772 votes to finish ahead of Chilean Fernando Gonzalez (8,064) and Rafael Nadal (6,347).

Mar 24, 2007 from AP:
KEY BISCAYNE - Tiger Woods has the last tee time Sunday, which is fortunate because Roger Federer kept him out late Saturday night. Woods waited through a rainstorm to watch his friend play, then stayed until the end of Federer's 6-4, 6-3 victory over 19-year-old American Sam Querrey in the second round of the Sony Ericsson Open.

Delayed more than two hours, the match began at 10:18 p.m. and ended at 11:20. Because Federer had an opening-round bye, the match was his first since his loss to Guillermo Canas at Indian Wells. He hasn't lost two matches in a row since 2003.

Woods shot a 68 Saturday for a four-shot lead after three rounds at the CA Championship at Doral. Federer said he phoned his friend to let him know it was raining on Key Biscayne, but Woods decided to make the 15-mile trip anyway.

Accompanied by wife Elin, Woods watched Federer's match from the stadium club level. During the latter delay, Woods hung out in the players' lounge with his wife, and Federer came by for a visit. Woods declined to talk to reporters.

Querrey is ranked 69th after starting the year 127th, but he managed to keep up with Federer for only six games. Federer converted his sixth break-point chance for a 4-3 lead, broke again to go up 3-2 in the second set and lost only one of 26 points on his first serve.

Mar 22, 2007
SEGA of America today announced that Virtua Tennis 3 for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 has shipped to retailers nationwide. The game will also be available on March 26, 2007 on the PSP (PlayStation Portable) system. Players can take to the court with intense four-way multiplayer action in Virtua Tennis 3 in fast-paced Singles and Doubles matches, and a host of brand new addictive mini-games. Players can also compete as or against 20 real-life tennis superstars in tournaments, or create and customize their own players in World Tour mode. Gamers will now experience new levels of realism that only true 1080p graphics can bring. With Virtua Tennis 3, experience firsthand the raw power and speed of the world's top tennis superstars, including Andy Roddick, Maria Sharapova, Roger Federer, Venus Williams, and 16 other elite pros from around the world.

Mar 21, 2007 from AP:
MIAMI - Roger Federer came out to watch Tiger Woods during his practice round for the WGC-CA Championship at the Doral Golf Resort & Spa on Wednesday.

This is the first time Woods and Federer have competed the same week in the same city. Federer's opening tennis match is Saturday night in the Sony Ericsson Open at Key Biscayne.

"I had never really seen live golf from professionals up until the last year," Federer said. "It's different from sitting in a stadium watching soccer or a tennis match. You've got to know where to stand to see the ball. For me, it was hard to follow the ball. I lost it just because he hits it so hard and so far."

The hardest part was getting a view from inside the ropes. Dressed in blue jeans, an untucked collared shirt and a black cap, Federer showed up on the back nine and was swarmed by fans wanting autographs. A tournament official let him inside the ropes, but PGA Tour officials said he couldn't stay. Only when Woods invited him in did Federer get some space.

"They said they didn't want to do a favor because other players otherwise want the same treatment," Federer said. "I guess just one Roger Federer was coming to the golf course today, so it was nice they got me inside the ropes."

They posed for pictures beyond the 18th green, and Federer walked through a corridor of fans as they yelled at Woods for an autograph. Different sports, different stadiums. But the tennis star noticed a few similarities.

"He's got media after the rounds, media after the practice rounds, fans following him during matches, practice rounds. It's the same thing for me," Federer said. "Autographs, photographs, everybody always wants something from you. You need tight security. It's almost easier when he's on the golf course."

from ASAP Sports:
LAURA NEAL: Tiger, thanks for joining us. Before we get to the incredible record at this event and at this golf course, maybe some fun stuff. You had an unusual large, extra-large gallery following you today. You had a special guest; you want to tell us who was out there with you?
TIGER WOODS: Yeah, Roger (Federer) came out and watched the back nine. We had dinner last night on the boat. He's obviously playing this week -- actually, he starts on Saturday. But it's great to have him out here. I think he's a wonderful supporter of golf, and I think it's pretty neat when you have probably the most dominant athlete on the planet out there in your gallery.

LAURA NEAL: Plan to return the favor this weekend?
TIGER WOODS: I'll be there. I'll definitely be there.

Q. Does he play golf?
TIGER WOODS: He plays, yeah. He played for a number of years and then got a rib injury for a while and he thought it was caused by golf, so he quit playing golf for a little bit and that's when his tennis took off. But he's playing a little bit more now, starting to get into it again and absolutely loves it. His mom is a hell of a player, she shoots in the 70s all the time so it's in the family.

Q. You said he's probably the most dominant athlete on the planet, are you saying that because of the back nine at Bay Hill on Sunday?
TIGER WOODS: Even if I won that tournament, doesn't matter. What he's done over the last three years -- last week he lost, but other than that, he's lost five or six matches for three years; that's pretty good.

Q. One more Federer question. The argument people make about whether it's tougher to win a golf tournament versus a tennis tournament, it sounds like you don't -- that tennis is harder to you?
TIGER WOODS: Well, tennis is in the sense that if you're physically dominant, you can dominate somebody. In our sport, you can't physically dictate what somebody else is going to do. You can't all of a sudden hit a drive out there past him and say, okay, I win the hole. That doesn't happen. So a person who actually is more physically gifted and physically dominant can actually just overpower somebody, and that just does not happen in our sport. So it's a little bit more difficult in that sense, golf-wise. But what he's done, you know, over the last three years, no one's ever done.

Q. When you were with Roger, do you guys have discussions about your individual sports and dominance, the aspect of dominance?
TIGER WOODS: No. It's more -- if we do talk about our sports, it's more in the sense, how we prepare, what he does, all of his training that he does off the court, you know, and what I do off the course to get ready. Just a number of wind sprints and miles we both log and our lifting schedules, how long and what type of lifting do we do. It's obviously very sport-driven, but also very similar at the same time.

Q. From the fan/paparazzi side of things, who has it worse?
TIGER WOODS: I might have a slight -- I don't know if you would call it an advantage or disadvantage. (Laughter)

Q. How so? What do you see in the limited times you've seen him play?
TIGER WOODS: Well, I think it's just more of walking down the street. I think -- in this country, certainly. But globally, I don't know, but I know certainly in this country that I'm probably a little bit more recognized than he is.

Q. (Roger had to walk outside the ropes today --)
TIGER WOODS: It's the TOUR policy. They are trying to clean up the TOUR and I totally understand that. They don't want to have people inside the ropes, but I just thought -- I'm sure I'll get fined for it. (Laughter) I don't mind paying, because, you know, he was starting to get hassled pretty good and I didn't think -- that's not why he came out here. He came out here to enjoy himself and watch me slap it around a little bit.

Q. Your preparation for tournaments, was there anything that you found surprisingly similar or surprisingly different between you and Roger?
TIGER WOODS: I think surprisingly different is how early he gets to a tournament site. He gets to a tournament site, he only plays 19, 20 events a year, but he gets there a half a week to a week early. I just keep giving him a bunch of grief that he's not able to get over the jet-lag I guess. (laughter)

from ESPN:
"He was in a similar situation to what I was in last week," Federer said after watching Tiger's practice round. "I tried to force the issue, and things just didn't go my way. Same with Tiger; maybe he tried to force the issue. He was down five shots going into the last round, so obviously the mistakes that happened earlier you probably forget."

Mar 14, 2007 from Pacific Life Open:
Roger Federer's campaign at the 2007 Pacific Life Open may have been cut unexpectedly short, but tennis' top ambassador made sure his stay in Indian Wells included a visit with the tournament's ball kids. Following his second round doubles match Tuesday, the ATP World No. 1 and UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador greeted the ball kids who had purchased Feder-bear Beanie Babies.

Federer, who was a ball kid at his hometown tournament in Basel, posed for pictures and collected the more than eighty Feder-bears to take back to his hotel room, promising the ball kids he would return all of them with his autograph.

The Feder-bear Beanie Baby® is a plush take-home likeness of the Swiss, aimed at raising funds for Assisting Children Everywhere Program (ACE), the global partnership between the ATP and UNICEF whose objective is to ensure the health, education and protection of children around the world.

from ASAP Sports:
Q. You and your buddy, Federer, are going to be competing in the same town at the same time next week. Currently Roger has been telling a few people at least that you're going to make a few trips to Key Biscayne.
TIGER WOODS: I would love to try and catch one of his matches, if not two of his matches, yeah.

Q. What is it about Federer's play on the tennis courts that impresses you the most?
TIGER WOODS: It's sick. (Laughter) I mean, it really is. What he does, he makes it look so effortless, and it's not. The shots and the angles and the things he can create, no one in the history of the game has ever been able to do. I mean, it's pretty neat for all of us to be watching a living legend play. You know he's going to surpass Sampras's record. It's just a matter of when.

Q. When you two guys get together, do you compare notes on success, or what do you guys talk about?
TIGER WOODS: Yeah, some of that, sometimes. Sometimes we may talk about mind-set that it takes, the discipline and the practice sessions, as well as the things you do off, for him off the court and off the course for me, to train and prepare. But a lot of the stuff is mainly BS. We're just giving each other a lot of grief all the time and it's a lot of fun.

Q. Do you pick up any tips from him, conditioning, anything in like that? TIGER WOODS: What he does is different than what I do obviously. But still, I think the time spent away from competition is very important and what you do in that off time to prepare for the next event, I don't think people have any understanding of what -- truly what it takes to prepare.

Mar 13, 2007 from USSA:
Roger Federer won the United States Sports Academy's Male Athlete of the Month award while American track star Gail Devers earned the Academy's Female Athlete of the Month honor for February.

Federer took over the No. 1 ranking in men's tennis more than three years ago. The 10-time Grand Slam champion reached a new milestone in February when he broke Jimmy Connors' 30-year-old mark with his 161st week at the top of the ATP rankings.

Federer finished ahead of Super Bowl Most Valuable Player Peyton Manning and American swimmer Michael Phelps. Manning was selected as the MVP of the Super Bowl after leading the Indianapolis Colts to victory over the Chicago Bears. Phelps dominated the Missouri Grand Prix by winning five gold medals and broke his own world record in the 200 meter butterfly.

from ATP:
Fourth-seeded Paul Hanley and Kevin Ullyett saved two match points en route to their 3-6, 6-2, 13-11 (Match TB) victory over the Swiss squad of Yves Allegro and Roger Federer before an overflow crowd on Stadium 2 in the second round doubles match of the Pacific Life Open. Hanley-Ullyett improved to 12-3 on the season by reaching their fourth quarterfinal (or better). Hanley-Ullyett saved match points at 9-10 and 10-11 in the Match Tie-break and won on their third match point.

from Tennis Magazine:
Roger Federer is unlikely to play Davis Cup unless the competition undergoes scheduling changes. “As long as they don't change the scheduling it's going to be hard for me to play, because my focus is on No.1 in the world and winning Grand Slams, Wimbledon especially,” said the Swiss. “Davis Cup is at the moment not the biggest priority and as long as they don't change those weeks it's going to be very hard for me.”

Mar 12, 2007 from Globe and Mail:
Into his 163rd week at No. 1, Roger Federer has a genuine appreciation of the lore of tennis and its personalities.

In an interview with The Globe and Mail in Toronto last August, he was shown a photograph of the Handsome Eight, a pre-Open tennis (1968) era barnstorming troupe that included his coach, Tony Roche. The others in the group (from six countries) were Pierre Barthès, Butch Buchholz, Cliff Drysdale, John Newcombe, Niki Pilic, Dennis Ralston and Roger Taylor.

They are all now in their 60s, but Federer knows each of them, with one exception. When told the player he did not recognize was Ralston, he was still able to say, "Yeah Ralston, I've heard his name."

Mar 11, 2007 from AP:
INDIAN WELLS - Guillermo Canas ended Roger Federer's 41-match winning streak Sunday with a 7-5, 6-2 victory in the second round of the Pacific Life Open.

This was Federer's 16th loss since he became No. 1 on Feb. 2, 2004, and his first opening match loss since 2004 at Cincinnati, where he lost to Dominic Hrbaty.

60th-ranked Canas broke Federer early in the first set, but the Swiss broke back at love and had two set points at 5-4 which he failed to convert. The Argentine went up 6-5 with a service break and held to close out the set. Then, between sets, Federer called for the ATP Tour trainer for assistance with a blister on his right toe and a problem with the tape on his feet and ankles coming loose.

Federer had his serve broken in the third game of the second set to go down 2-1. He called for the trainer again after holding serve to pull to 3-2 in the second set, then lost the final three games. Federer was cited for 39 unforced errors to only eight from the Argentine.

Canas returned to the tour in September after serving a 15-month drug suspension. Ranked No. 8 in the world in June 2005, he won his seventh title last month at Costa do Sauipe. He lost to Alexander Waske in the final round of qualifying, though, and was on the way home until Xavier Malisse withdrew. Canas is the first lucky loser to beat a world No. 1 since Sandon Stolel beat Thomas Muster in Dubai first round in 1996.

from Sunday Telegraph:
Having surpassed Jimmy Connors's record of 160 successive weeks at No 1 a fortnight ago, Roger Federer will break Guillermo Vilas's tally of 46 consecutive match wins if he triumphs in the Californian desert next weekend.

The bookmakers think it's a 2-5 chance, but Federer himself is not especially fussed about the growing number of records he has broken. Speaking exclusively to The Sunday Telegraph, the Swiss admitted: "I probably wouldn't know all of them."

Federer's place in history will be determined chiefly by the total number of grand slams he wins. Beating Sampras's tally of 14 is near the top of his list of objectives, along with winning Roland Garros and the Olympics. He is also gunning for another of the American's records. "Total weeks at No 1 is an aim for me," he said.

"I spoke to Pete about it the other day. I asked him how it was for him when he got the most weeks at No 1 ever. He didn't remember any celebration or any big thing about it, which I'm surprised about, because he was at the top for 286 weeks."

Unlike Sampras, Federer celebrated his latest feat by going on a boat trip with friends during the Dubai Championships, his latest title. Despite this invincibility, there are several records that Federer believes are beyond him, such as Vilas's 16 titles in a season. "It's almost impossible, but something to go after," he said.

Mar 10, 2007 from Desert Sun:
Guests at La Quinta Resort & Club netted a bonus of major proportions Friday. They got to watch the world's greatest tennis players practice.

For several hours Friday morning, tennis champions Maria Sharapova and Roger Federer whacked tennis balls and perfected their serves on the historic Stadium Court at the Tennis Club.

Patricia Ohara, who arrived from Honolulu for her husband's induction into the American College of Trial Lawyers, couldn't believe her luck. "I stopped because I saw someone who was wearing a headband like Roger Federer,'' she said. "Then it registered: He is Roger Federer."

"I can't believe I'm this close,'' Ohara whispered, as Federer sent one zinger after another over the net. "I mean, he's even wearing his regular clothes. He looks like a regular guy."

Mar 8, 2007 from Sarasota Herald-Tribune:
Q: Do you watch tennis on television?
IVAN LENDL: I only watch (Roger) Federer. He has the potential to be the best ever. I wouldn't give it to him yet, but he is certainly on his way. I watch him and Tiger (Woods). I feel very fortunate to be watching two who will probably be the best of all times. They are both phenomenal.

Mar 7, 2007 from DPA:
World-beating Roger Federer on Wednesday began his methodical buildup as he attempts to make more tennis history at the Indian Wells Masters starting at the weekend.

The Swiss world number 1 spent a few brief days in Europe before jetting out to California to defend the title at one of the dozen events he won last season.

Federer, while dominating opponents, has his eye on his place in history. He can become the first player to win Indian Wells - or any Masters Series - four times in succession.

"It would be something very special, of course, to win it four times in a row," he said after Dubai and before arriving in the desert from Zurich on Tuesday. "I really enjoy playing against history and breaking records."

Mar 6, 2007 from Reuters:
Defending champion Roger Federer will meet former winner Lleyton Hewitt in the fourth round of the Pacific Life Open if the tournament pans out according to the seedings. The pair were put on a mouth-watering collision course in the opening Masters Series event of the year when the men's draw was released on Tuesday.

Federer, expected to arrive in Indian Wells on Thursday, will launch his defence against either Czech Jan Hajek or a qualifier after getting a bye into the second round. Should Federer claim his fourth successive title at Indian Wells, he would become the first player to do so at a Masters Series event.

from Gulf News:
Dubai - Tennis legend Bjorn Borg has tipped Roger Federer for even bigger greatness, provided the Swiss ace can keep himself injury free. "He simply does not have any more weaknesses left in him. It is such a pleasure to see him play," Borg told Gulf News.

"To me, Roger Federer is the right model for anyone aspiring to be a tennis player. It is such a pleasure to just watch him play. His shot-making has got better and I doubt there is any shot he cannot make in any part of the court," Borg said.

"All records will tumble when it comes to Roger. He is such a complete player that I do not see anyone getting better than him for a long time from now. However, he will have to ensure he stays injury free," Borg noted.

Mar 5, 2007 from The Guardian:
Roger Federer travels to Indian Wells today with Guillermo Vilas's record of 46 consecutive victories in sight and the world No1 has credited his continued improvement to work he has done on the mental side of his game.

Federer regained his Dubai Open title and afterwards revealed the change in his training and preparation. "Previously I always thought it was just tactical and technique," Federer said, "but every match has become almost mental and physical - I try to push myself to move well. I try to push myself not to get upset and stay positive, and that's what my biggest improvement is over all those years. Under pressure I can see things very clear."

Mar 4, 2007 from Reuters:
DUBAI - A few days after making it 161 consecutive weeks as world number one, breaking the record held by Jimmy Connors, Roger Federer defeated Mikhail Youzhny in Saturday's Dubai Open final to equal Bjorn Borg's total of 41 wins in a row.

Several more records are ready to fall when Federer moves on to the Masters Series event at Indian Wells. If he wins his opening match in California, he will equal John McEnroe's record of 42 successive victories. Two matches later he could equal the Ivan Lendl run of 44, moving in sight of the all-time winning streak of 46 set by Guillermo Vilas in 1977.

"It's nice to be playing against the history books," Federer said. "It's one of the nicest things to be able to do because I never thought I would ever do such a thing."

"But I think we have to be a little bit patient and see how my records and career finishes up," said the modest Swiss. "At the end of my career we can sit down and say okay, did I break the records or didn't I? Am I the best or am I not? All this talk right now it's all speculation. I'm still very far off in terms of grand slam victories and tournaments won."

It is typical of Federer to take everything in his stride and he shrugged off any prospect of nerves heading to Indian Wells. "Not one bit," he said. "Because I'm not playing to beat that record - I'm playing to win the tournament. Unfortunately we can't look 10 years ahead and say 'This is what I want to achieve in tennis' - we're very short-sighted. We go tournament by tournament, match by match, point by point even, so the records won't play a role."

Mar 3, 2007 from Reuters:
DUBAI - Roger Federer defeated unseeded Russian Mikhail Youzhny 6-4 6-3 on Saturday to win his fourth Dubai Open title in five years.

It was also the top seed's 41st consecutive win, stretching back to the start of the U.S. Open in August, equaling the fourth-longest streak in the Open era of Bjorn Borg who witnessed the feat.

Youzhny, who upset Rafael Nadal in the quarter-finals, was seeking his second crown in two weeks after winning in Rotterdam but he could not prevent Federer claiming his seventh straight title.

The Swiss dropped his serve in the opening game when Youzhny hit a winning return off a second serve. But Federer held his second service game with an ace and then leveled at 2-2 when Youzhny hit a double-fault.

As both players mixed floating shots with occasional power, Federer broke to take a 5-3 lead when Youzhny netted a backhand. Although Federer failed to serve out the set, Youzhny dropped his serve for a third time when he netted a backhand approach.

Federer then took advantage of his deflated opponent by allowing the Russian just three points in the opening three games of the second set. Federer went on to hold a multitude of break points, failing to win four at 4-1 and then five match points on Youzhny's serve at 5-2, before clinching victory on his seventh match point.

"It feels very nice," said Federer. "I think the matches were extremely tough here this week for me. I thought actually all my opponents played very good against me, so to come through as I did against Mikhail tonight, I think that's to be rated very high."

"I think he's playing very well and I really played extremely well at the right moments once again. Tonight to come through and get the title back from losing it last year, it's a great feeling. I'm still on an incredible run and haven't lost for many months, so I hope I can keep this up in the States."

"I must admit that Mikhail put a lot of pressure at the start of the match, and I really needed to step up my game," Federer said. "It was a bit of a rough start for me this year, as it always happens with me in Dubai. But I am happy that I saved my best for the last."

"I am on a nice roll right now and I am playing in Indian Wells next," Federer said. "I have won there the last three years, so hopefully I can win again and beat (Guillermo) Vilas' record there. Records are meant to be broken, but if I don't, it's all right. I will start all over again."

"Very good for one month no tennis, but I still had the streak going for me so there's always a lot on the line when I'm playing and I want to try to give the best for myself and for the fans. I was able to do that, so all in all, I was very happy with my performance. I've played better tennis, that's for sure, but I played very well at the right time and that's usually what gets you through matches and that's what happened here this week."

"It's nice to equal such great champions. Like I said on the court, it's been a great honor for me to play in front of Bjorn because of what he's done for our game, and that he's still interested in the game is for us very nice to see. I hope I can keep that streak going and I'm very happy, first of all, of the title here in Dubai."

"It's a mental and physical relief that the tournament is over, that the pressure is off for about six days before the next tournament comes along. It always feels very nice and you feel like all the hard work paid off, the decisions you made were right. You get this great feeling that you're on the right track."

The days of the round robin system are numbered following the recent fiasco at the Las Vegas Open, world number one Roger Federer said on Saturday.

ATP chief executive Etienne de Villiers had to apologise for not fully understanding the issues when he ruled James Blake, rather than little-known Russian Evgeny Korolev, should go into the quarter-finals at the end of the round robin stage.

The situation was complicated by the fact that Blake had needed to beat Argentine Juan Martin del Potro with the loss of no more than five games to reach the last eight. He was leading 6-1 3-1 when his opponent retired because of breathing problems, handing Blake a walkover.

The American was told he would not advance because the rules stated that games won or lost in a walkover did not count, but after officials consulted de Villiers the decision was reversed. Korolev had beaten Blake in the round robin stage, and the decision to put the American into the quarter-finals provoked uproar, with Marat Safin and Lleyton Hewitt leading the protests before Korolev was reinstated.

"Everybody knows I was against it (the round robin system) in the first place," said Federer. "It's actually very disappointing to see things like this had to happen first before you realise that the system is not going to work. Nothing against Etienne de Villiers, he's trying his best, but all I hope is he doesn't change the integrity of the game.

"I've always said you have to keep tennis the way it is and not try to change and mix it up and try too many things at the same time. He's burned his hands on that, that's for sure, and I doubt it's going to happen next year, the round robin system.

Mar 2, 2007 from AP:
DUBAI - Roger Federer beat Tommy Haas in straight sets 6-4, 7-5 on Friday to reach his fifth straight Dubai Open final. It was his 40th straight victory. He is six wins away from Guillermo Vilas' all-time record of 46 consecutive wins, set in 1977.

Fifth seed Haas, who won last week's ATP tournament in Memphis without facing a break point, had an early chance to break Federer in the second game of the first set. He later had three break points in the fourth game of the second set. But Federer held off the challenge and broke Haas in the third game of the first set and 11th game of the second.

Haas hit an incredible between-the-legs winner in the 10th game of the second set — copying a shot that Federer made in the second round against Daniele Bracciali — to earn a set-point. But Federer held serve, broke Haas in the next and then served out for the match.

"It was extremely physical out there tonight, a lot of tough points. It was tough to get the break, and he didn't face a break point all last week so he was definitely on a roll," said Federer.

"I saw him play against (Olivier) Rochus and he played very well, especially from the baseline. I knew it was going to be tough, a lot of running, patience as well, and hopefully from my end also serve well and try to stay in the match.

"The second-set break I got was crucial after saving all those break points. To come out tonight against someone playing as well as him, I thought that was an excellent performance. I rate it very highly."

Federer will next face Mikhail Youzhny in the final which will be a repeat of last year's semifinals and 2005 quarterfinals. Federer won in straight sets both times. Youzhny has never beaten Federer, winning only two sets in eight matches.

from swissinfo:
Swiss President Micheline Calmy-Rey described Basel as "world class" and a door to the world which showed the rest of Switzerland how the greatest challenges could be overcome with "openness, tolerance, humanity and a pinch of humility".

She cited Basel-born tennis genius Roger Federer, "who despite breathtaking success remains modest", as one of the best ambassadors for Switzerland. And she spotlighted the achievements of award-winning Swiss architects Herzog and de Meuron, who are based in the city, and the Basel pharmaceutical industry, "one of the most competitive in the world".

Mar 1, 2007 from AFP:
DUBAI - Roger Federer was given a scare before reaching the semi-finals of the Dubai Open with a 6-3, 6-7 (6/8), 6-3 win over Novak Djokovic on Thursday.

Though Federer achieved his 39th successive win (fifth best in the Open Era), he lost a tie-break for the first time in 16 tries (since the US Open in September) and ran into difficulties in the final set. He committed 52 unforced errors and needed more than two hours to top Djokovic.

Without Hawkeye, introduced in this tournament for the first time, Federer would have won in straight sets. On the second of a pair of match points (6-5) in the tie-break the line judge called Federer's drive in, a decision which would have given him a straight sets win. But the world number 14 appealed to the replay, which showed Federer's shot out, and two points later stole the set with a net cord.

"The ball was out, but it's hard to accept, match point. You are either shaking hands or changing sides, and that happens," said Federer. "It was a bit of a pity it went three and it had a bitter taste at the end with the netcord and Hawkeye."

"Maybe I should have closed it out earlier and not got to that position. I should have closed it out at 6-4 (in the tiebreak). I can only blame myself."

"I can see the headlines already, kind of going like 'Oh God, he missed match point with the Hawk-Eye,' and the whole thing. This wasn't exactly our best match, but I think it was more of a battle on the day, kind of who manages to play better. It was me in the end, so I am happy about that."

After that seventh-seeded Djokovic began to play his best tennis of the match, while Federer, who found the court faster than he really liked, struggled with his forehand. When Djokovic reached 3-3 with an impressive service game, and Federer had to battle to get to 4-3, Djokovic sensed he could win.

But two missed ground strokes from Djokovic slid him to love-40, and Federer took the chance immediately, an outrageously early backhand return of serve brooking no response. He served out for the match without difficulty, earning a semi-final with Tommy Haas.

"He fought well. I liked the way I closed it out in the end," Federer said. "The youngsters have improved a lot. I think I had an easier one against him at the Australian Open."

"I definitely think my forehand is not working like the way it usually works," Federer said. "Some half-court balls, I usually put them away in my sleep. But I can't quite do that here for some reason, so that's a bit of a worry."

from Game Zone:
NAMCO BANDAI Games America Inc., announced today Smash Court Tennis® 3 for the PSP® (PlayStation®Portable) system. It'll be game, set and match as players compete as or against 16 of their favorite Pro-Tennis stars including #1 ranked Roger Federer and 2006 French Open champions Rafael Nadal and Justine Henin. Smash Court Tennis 3 will be serving up aces when it's released in summer 2007.