Federer's finest in Madrid
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ByEurosport
Published 21/10/2006 at 12:45 GMT
World No. 1 Roger Federer needed just 58 minutes to dispatch of fourth seed David Nalbandian 6-4 6-0 and advance to his first ever Madrid Masters final on Saturday. The Swiss top seed will next face Chilean Fernando Gonzalez, who defeated Czech No. 1 Toma
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Federer controlled the match in every aspect of the game to claim his 18th consecutive win and enter his 14th final of the year.
"We'll have to see what happens tomorrow but it will be different because it will be five sets," Federer told Spanish television.
"I've won matches 6-0 before so it doesn't mean that much but it is always nice to win that way."
After Nalbandian fought his old foe hard in the opener Federer completely imposed his will on the Argentine in the second set, which lasted only 22 minutes.
Nalbandian won two difficult three-set matches against Tim Henman and Marat Safin to make the semi-final, but entered the match against his old foe with confidence.
Still, Nalbandian appeared lackadaisical in the second set, and Federer looked as if he was playing a qualifier rather than the World No. 4.
On Nalbandian's final service game Federer claimed an overhand slam at the net, a backhand winner down the line, and an easy forehand winner to take the match without dropping a point in the final game.
"I was really pleased with the way I played," the Swiss 25-year-old told a news conference. "I was aggressive and he was the best returner I played all week.
"The second set was phenomenal especially at the end when I started to hit freely and take my chances. It's a great feeling. There were more and more good shots coming from my end and it was great fun for me.
"It was nice to make the fans feel as though they are living through something special."
Federer now leads the life-time series since the two men turned pro 7-6, again avenging his loss in the finals of last year's Masters Cup.
Follow LIVE coverage of the second semi-final between Tomas Berdych and Fernando Gonzalez from 16:00CET on www.eurosport.com.
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