Roger Federer Defeated James Blake in Macau Tennis Showdown Exhibition Tournament

World no. 2 Roger Federer defeated James Blake in Macau Tennis Showdown exhibition event on Thursday. James Blake threw some tough challenges for Federer, but the 13-grand slam winner did not have too much problem to pull off a 6-4, 6-4 victory over Federer. Just two days before the match, Federer defeated Blake in a one-set clash in Kuala Lumpur. Last year, Pete Sampras defeated Roger Federer on the same court and that was a welcome return for the Swiss star. Crowds supported Federer a lot which, he thinks, was because of their sympathy stimulated by his defeat to Pete Sampras last year.

The most attractive game in the Macau Tennis Showdown exhibition on Thursday was between two legends: Bjorn Borg and John McEnroe. The match created a nostalgic feeling among many who could clearly recollect the experience of many high-profile matches of 1980s between McEnroe and Borg. Bjorn Borg won the one-set encounter 7-6 in tie-breaker which seemed time could not leave any mark in their game.

One week earlier, McEnroe defeated Borg in Malaysia and the two will meet once again on 22 November in Bangkok, Thailand.

Roger Federer vs James Blake: Who will Win?

James Blake could never become a big threat for Roger Federer. Even the American could not come in the same line of Rafael Nadal or Novak Djokovic, who are known as possible threats for the kingdom of Roger Federer. However, the things seem to be different this time around. The two are lining up to face each other in the quarter final of Australian Open 2008 today.

Now, before going though the answer of the question given in the title, I would like to take some points into account. First of all, reaching the quarter final of the tournament, James Blake has marked his best ever Australian Open performance. The second one is that James Blake, the 12^th seed, could not yet reach the semi final of any grand slam tournament so far. Another point comes here is that Roger Federer could not continue his imperious form in the last two matches against unseeded players, though could get over the hurdles successfully. The last point, I want to mention here is that Roger Federer is now in his mission to win the Australian Open title for the third time in a row, which would be his 13^th grand slam title, just one behind from Pete Sampras’ record 14 grand slam titles in his career.

Considering the fact given above, you can realize easily that to what extent it is important for Federer to win the match. It does not mean, the match is not or less important for James Blake. What I want to state here is that, Federer has a goal ahead of him to reach, but he was underperformed in the last two matches, while James Blake has been in his prime form in the tournament.

So, if Federer and Blake keep continue their recent form, then it would be a match between an unimpressive Roger Federer and in form James Blake. Well, there are many who might believe that even Roger Federer with his unimpressive form would be enough to reel off victory over James Blake in his prime form.

However, I do not like to agree with the. To me, if Roger Federer gets back his imperious form then there is hardly anyone who could show enough resistance. His dominant form of last couple of years will support my idea. However, if Federer can not retain his natural form and Blake continues his impressive run, then it could bring out a decisive victory for James Blake. However, on top of all, I hope to experience an interesting match today.

Timing and Schedule of Roger Federer vs James Blake Quarter Final Match of Australian Open 2008

The upcoming quarter final match between Roger Federer and James Blake is now in the center of all attention to their fans. Federer has come to Australian Open 2008 with the mission of winning his third Australian Open title in a row, which would see him move within one of the record 14 grand slam titles held by American great Pete Sampras. James Blake, in contrast, is now in the way to reach to the semi final of a grand slam tournament for the first time in his career. I know that there are many who are now eager to know the timing of Roger Federer vs James Blake match. Here goes the timing of the match:

Date: 23 January, Wednesday

Venue: Rod Laver Arena, Melbourne Park

Local Time (Melbourne): 7:30 PM

GMT: 8:30 AM

Indian Time: 2:00 PM

If you are interested to adjust the match time with your local time then click here.

Roger Federer and James Blake faced each other for seven times in the past. Roger Federer, top seed, proved too much for James Blake to win in all those previous matches. However, Blake has been in his prime form and looks determined to take on Roger Federer this time around. Added to that, Roger Federer was not in his great form in the two previous round matches.

So, James Blake seems much more confident now. However, the fact is that the players like Roger Federer can bring out their best in the high profile matches. There are many, who think that, Federer can survive against James Blake even if he is not in his great form. Well, I will go that far, because Blake has also been in an impressive form. What I would like to say is that Roger Federer is favorite for the clash, but if James Blake comes up with his best performance and Roger Federer can not be up to the mark, then James Blake will certainly have chances in the match.

Roger Federer vs James Blake: Quarter Final of Australian Open 2008

Roger Federer and James Blake are going to face each other in the quarter final clash of Australian Open 2008. World no. 1, Roger Federer is gearing up to win her 13^th grand slam titles, going another step further to catch Pete Samprpas’ record 14 grand slam titles. The Swiss was the champion of Australian Open for last two years meaning the Australian Open title of this year would be his third in a row.

American James Blake does not have any such goal in the tournament. However, do not think that he is packing up to catch the return flight. In fact, Blake has not reached the semi final of any grand slam tournament so far and reaching the quarter final, the 12^th seed has already marked his best Australian Open success. Naturally, Blake will be inspired to play all out against Federer to try to make it to the semi final.

Well, Blake could find another target ahead of him to reach this time around. Blake had seven meetings with Roger Federer so far, but the American found it too difficult to win any of those previous seven matches. So, once he has been in good form, he will certainly try out his best to win this time around. Indicating their 2006 Masters Cup final match up, where Federer won 6-0, 6-3, 6-4, James Blake has said that he had played pretty well that day, but admitted, it was not enough as the Swiss was up to the mark. He said:

"I thought I played pretty well in the finals of the Masters Cup," said Blake. "Was just kind of blown away by how well he played that day. If that's the case again, you know, it hurts, it's disappointing at the time, but by the time I got on the plane or got off the plane I just said, 'you know, what could I have done?'

"He played too well. I can't beat myself up about it. I can go out and practice and see if I can get better, see if there's any way to defend what he was doing that day. But try to learn something from all of them. So far I've learned he's pretty good."

Yes, it is true that when Roger Federer is in his prime, others have hardly anything to do that day. Actually, Blake’s hopes lies herein as the world no. 1 could not show enough dominance in the last two matches. Federer had to survive through a hard-fought five-set victory against unseeded Janko Tipsarevic from Serbia. Then Tomas Berdych took the every bit of Federer’s strength before losing in straight-sets in the fourth round. Taking Federer’s unimpressive victories as evidence, James Blake found his inspiration before he takes on Federer today.

The Sydney Morning Herald reported:

"Just (Tipsarevic) taking him to 10-8 in the fifth shows that it doesn't matter who you are, you can play your best and take him to the limit," Blake said.

"Every time I've stepped out on the court with him I've felt if I play my best, I give myself a shot."

Well, Roger Federe does not seem to be worried enough ahead of the quarter final clash with James Blake. He knows it very well that he does not need to concentrate on others. What he needs is to put in his natural performance, which is enough to break down anyone in a particular day. However, Roger Federer has been full of praise about James Blake, referring his aggressive style of game.

ESPN reported:

"[Blake] plays incredibly aggressive tennis. Improved his serve a lot, his backhand. So have to be very careful. I know his game sort of suits my game. I've had some great matches against him where I always play my very best. So we'll see how it goes this time around. Definitely got to play offensive myself, put him on the back foot as well.

"I'm excited to play against him. He's one of the nicest guys on tour, very respected on tour, very sportsmanlike."

Roger Federer has already become a legendary figure in Men’s tennis. There are many who are now predicting where he would stop after his retirement. Roger Federer won all of the men’s singles grand slam titles except French Open in the last two years. Now, ahead of the Roger Federer vs James Blake quarter final match of Australian Open 2008, it is really very hard to bet on James Blake, considering all the facts related to them. It is, however, true that if Blake can make it possible, then, no doubt, he is going to enter into the history of tennis, even before playing any grand slam final in his career.

US Open 2007: Tommy Haas Defeated James Blake in a Classic Match

Tommy Haas has defeated sixth ranked James Blake in a very close match in their fourth round match. The five-round match was really very interesting and enjoyable. American top seed James Blake started the match excellently wining the first set by 6-4. However, Tommy Haas came back in the second set winning it by 6-4. Then again it was James Blake to win the third set by 6-3. Till then everything was good for Blake. However, in the fourth set, German 10^th seed Tommy Haas bounced back in style winning the set by 6-0. In the last set, Tommy Haas won the match in a tie breaker by 7-6.

So, you can easily understand how can excitement was in the match. The was really very enjoyable for the fans. However, the home crowed got hurt to see their sun losing. Actually the match was full of suspense and you can not say particularly that who played well and who did not. Rather,in every few minutes the match took new turn and thus it deserves to be a classic matches of US Open 2007.

Source:

Tennis.com

US Open 2007: James Blake Reaches at the Fourth Round

Sixth seed James Blake has reached at the fourth round of US Open 2007. Blake defeated Austrian Stefan Koubek in his third round match. The American top seed could not win the match so easily. Though Blake started the match very well as he won the first set by 6-4. However, in the second set, his Austrian opponent bounced back to win by 6-3. The third set was also a close one though Blake could survive wining the set by 7-6. However, in the last set, James Blake did not give any chance to Stefan Koubek as Blake won the set by 6-1.

The New York Times reported:
He outlasted Stefan Koubek of Austria, 6-4, 3-6, 7-6 (7-5), 6-1, in a match that did not end until after 1 a.m. this morning.
When it was over, Blake thanked what remained of a once-huge crowd. “There are a million things to do on a Saturday night in New York, so for you guys to stay out here until 1 a.m. really means a lot to me,” he said. “I feel like I’m at a party here.”
It was a distinctly after-hours party.

James Blake could not yet win any grand slam tournament in his career. Blakes’s best grand slam performance is his quarter final appearance in 2005 and 2006 US Open. So, Bloake must be determined to win his first grand slam title in US Open 2007. Now, let us see how far James Blake can go in US Open 2007.