Such a poetically appropriate detail helps explain how a legendary athlete became even more of an icon on Sunday evening at Wimbledon, and yet, in the aftermath of another classic gentlemen’s singles final at the Big W, that numerical twist can’t even begin to convey the full measure of the 4-hour, 17-minute epic that unfolded on the world’s most famous tennis court.

In a narrowly-confined sense, Federer merely did what nearly everyone expected him to do against Andy Roddick: Win, and claim sole possession of the record for singles titles at major championships, leaving Pete Sampras–a late-arriving attendee in the Royal Box–alone in second place. Yet, a more expansive view of Sunday’s scintillating showstopper can’t adequately contain all the narratives and emotions that poured forth from another fabulous final at SW19.

Federer might have been the official winner in a 5-7, 7-6 (6), 7-6 (5), 3-6, 16-14 marathon against Roddick, but the aftermath of the match was dominated not so much by celebrations of the Swiss’s long-awaited achievement as it was by a recognition of the American underdog’s mighty effort… and overwhelming heartbreak.

Federer will not find it a problem to bathe in another ocean of accolades, congratulations, British pounds (850,000 of them), and signs around the All-England Club recognizing his 2009 victory at The Championships. Pundits and fans have found it very easy to praise the 27-year-old giant who just elevated his status to an even greater degree in the annals of men’s tennis. As he prepares to welcome his first child into the world with wife Mirka this summer, Roger will be well Fed and comforted in many more ways than one.

The man who made this moment was Roddick, a tireless and always-sincere competitor who played the best match of his life–even better than against Andy Murray in Friday’s semifinals–yet still lost. The American’s fate is oh-so-similar to what Elena Dementieva experienced in her Thursday loss to Serena Williams in the ladies’ singles semis: A max-out performance of epic proportions was somehow, someway, not rewarded with a breakthrough result. Roddick does have a major to his credit (the 2003 U.S. Open), but the 26-year-old who has long hungered for Wimbledon will improbably have to wait another year for his day in the sunshine of victory.

It can’t be said any more plainly than this: Roddick played like a Wimbledon champion on Sunday. The No. 6 seed outplayed the second-seeded Federer, making fewer unforced errors (33 to 38) while–in an interesting case of role reversal–providing a steadier brand of backcourt play and a generally superior passing shot. Federer typically bosses Roddick around the court–that’s how the Swiss accumulated an 18-2 head-to-head record in 20 prior meetings–but in this match, Roddick’s retooled game, molded into stern and steely stuff by new coach Larry Stefanki, gave Federer fewer looks at easy winners. Roddick’s massively improved two-handed backhand attained considerably greater depth, while the American’s forehand drove through the court and repeatedly surprised the Swiss. No longer pushing the ball as he had in past encounters with Fed, Roddick varied his angle of attack to get a decorated champion off balance behind the baseline.

How, then, did Roddick not manage to translate his excellence into a win against a more frail form of Federer, who didn’t possess his customary zing on his groundstrokes?

By losing a handful of very precious points, that’s how.

Grass-court tennis, more than the clay or hardcourt forms of the sport, demands an ability to win the small but significant points that matter more than most. The uneven bounces created by the organic playing surface, plus the low, skidding action of the ball as it rubs off on the blades of grass, simply make it that much more difficult to break serve on the green stuff. This year, the lawns of Wimbledon played quicker than they had in prior years, and as a result, more matches acquired the shape and texture of a traditional grass-court match: namely, a serve-fest defined by tiebreakers and break-point conversions in which chances for glory come and go very quickly.

Roddick did break Federer to win the first and fourth sets, but the American might have been lifting his first Wimbledon trophy had he been able to convert just one point in the second set.

It’s hard to think of a bigger tiebreak than a second-set tiebreak; either the leader in the match takes a two-set lead, or the trailer in the match evens the score at a set apiece. Roddick, having taken the opening stanza, roared to a 6-2 lead in the second-set tiebreak before Federer–with a flick backhand on Roddick’s serve and then two powerful serves of his own–erased three set points in succession. Roddick would have preferred to own two serves at 6-3 in that tiebreak, but after Fed held his two-serve sequence to get to 6-5, Roddick still enjoyed a position he could only have dreamed about before Sunday’s match began: One serve, in his hands, on his racket, for a two-set lead against a five-time Wimbledon champion. Much as hard-serving Ivo Karlovic rolled to the quarterfinals at this event by getting into tiebreaks and then laying down the hammer with his serve, Roddick similarly had Federer on the ropes. One ace or service winner, and the loser of the 2004 and 2005 finals to Federer would gain sweet revenge in 2009.

Oh, but Roddick couldn’t deliver the thumper he so badly needed, and then–after playing a pretty good point off a second ball–the underdog, for the only time in the match, cracked under pressure. He had a high backhand volley to the open court, the second set waiting to be won, but the shot sailed wide. A perfect opportunity–the chance of a lifetime–had gone by the boards for the man who wanted Wimbledon so desperately.

To the surprise of absolutely no one, Federer–saver of four set points in a row–breathed easier once he climbed to 6-all in the tiebreak. The Swiss used a passing shot and a steady hand from the backcourt to claim the next two points and even the match in the process. These two skilled stick-wielders fashioned a fifth set for the ages, but if Roddick had converted the 6-5 point in the second-set breaker, a packed Centre Court crowd might never have seen the special spectacle.

There were two other points–yes, just two of them; tennis is that cruel–Roddick failed to win on Sunday, but in this instance, the American could do precious little about the outcome. Whereas the 6-5 point in the second-set breaker was donated by a Roddick error, Federer prevented his feisty foe from having a say in the matter as the fifth set just kept continuing. At 8-all, Roddick’s backcourt game and passing shot arsenal created a 15-40 advantage and two break points that put the sixth seed on the verge of serving for the championship. Federer, though, displaying the composure of the champion he is, hammered an ace and then a serve-swinging volley combo to swat away the two break chances. In an ice-veins display oh-so-similar to the 2007 Wimbledon final against Rafael Nadal (Fed saved 15-40 at both 1-all and 2-all in the fifth set en route to victory over Rafa two years ago), Fed looked death in the eye and prevailed. So strong was Federer on serve that he never faced a break point in his other 14 (yes, that’s not a typo) fifth-set service games. Roddick wasn’t too shabby, either, allowing just two break points of his own in 15 service games. With both players shrugging off the occasional mis-hit or bad bounce, the final and deciding stanza carried on into its 30th game. But as shadows began to engulf Centre Court, the knowledge of his escape at 8-all had to lift Federer’s confidence.

That small but meaningful measure of additional belief would finally enter the foray with Roddick serving to stay in the match (for the 11th time, one should add) at 14-15.

Having played so well for so long, Roddick–due to losing three key points out of the 428 that were played up to that moment–still trailed on a day when his effort should have been sufficient to land him in the locker room as a gleeful Wimbledon champion. But because he couldn’t snare each and every opportunity that came his way, Roddick had to toe the service line to remain on court a little while longer.

But after 428 points, it would soon be clear that in the final eight points of the day, Roddick’s tank just ran out of fuel.

The American’s legs simply lost their juice in the 30th game of the longest fifth set in the history of any major championship. The longest Wimbledon final in terms of games played (77) finally ended because Roddick began to cough up the errors he had minimized for the previous four-plus hours. Big serves got Roddick out of a love-30 deficit and offered the American a game point at 40-30, but with his first serve unable to close the deal, a still-fresh Federer played percentage tennis and waited out Roddick long enough to draw shanked shots from the tiring man from Texas. When Federer got his first championship point–only his second break point of a marathon set–Roddick was not able to keep the ball in the court. A framed forehand sailed well beyond the playing surface, and Federer–despite operating at a level well below his best–had found the fortitude to gut out his sixth Wimbledon title, but more importantly, his 15th major crown.

This match–given the bewildering, beautiful, ballsy nature of its sprawling, sweeping fifth-set finale–did not deserve to have a loser, but competitive athletics inevitably must. Roger Federer won this Wimbledon title, but the cruel and heartless aspect of this titanic tennis tilt was that Andy Roddick, never better in his life, was still consigned to second place.

Federer was muted and modest in post-match celebrations and press conferences. That’s entirely appropriate given the heart–and heartbreak–which colored Andy Roddick’s performance on a golden day in England. It’s ironic that Federer’s march to “15″ became so subdued at the end, but a drained and dejected American athlete deserves to be paid such respect after another stomach-punch loss he frankly didn’t deserve.

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Serena Williams had not won a ladies’ singles championship at the All-England Club since 2003, but this little sister now stands tall in suburban London once again after a Saturday smackdown of big sister Venus Williams. A tidy 7-6 (3), 6-2 win, attained in just 87 minutes, gives Serena her 11th Grand Slam crown, her third Wimbledon, and her third championship in the last four major tournaments. An already-decorated career just became that much more impressive, and there’s no better place to enhance a portfolio than at the most prestigious tournament on the planet.

This match might have paled in comparison to last year’s all-Williams final (won by Venus, 7-5, 6-4), but the high-stakes showdown provided yet one more glimpse at the source of Serena’s supremacy. Much as Elena Dementieva could not overcome her failure (not due to any great mistake, but a failure nonetheless) to claim a match point against Serena in Thursday’s spectacular semifinal, so it also was that Venus could not rebound from a blown opportunity against her little sister on the final Saturday of The Championships.

The biggest point of this match was not hard to identify, given the trajectory of the proceedings. Serena lost just eight points on serve, but three of those points came in the eighth game of the first set, with Serena serving at 3-4. Venus gained a 15-40 edge and, after losing one break point, gained the upper hand on the next. Serena, desperately trying to close the point at net on the ad side, was plainly out of position as Venus let loose a topspin forehand passing shot to a wide-open deuce court. Improbably, however, the ball sailed a few inches long. Venus bent over in frustration, knowing that on a day when service breaks would be hard to come by, she had just frittered away an easy chance to take a 5-3 lead and serve out the first set.

Serena Williams has made a career out of pouncing when opponents–even other family members–fail to put her away. Liberated by this escape–just as she flourished after dodging that one match point against Dementieva–Serena, at deuce, convincingly won the next two service points to hold for 4-all. After that portion of the proceedings, the second-seeded little sister conceded practically nothing to her third-seeded sibling. Serena would get into–and dominate–a first-set tiebreak with an overwhelming serve and a spot-on forehand that left Venus shaken and uncertain with her movement and footwork. In a very anticlimactic second set, Serena lost only two points–yes, two!–on her serve, coasting through a majority of games and then breaking for a 4-2 lead when Venus, sensing her impending demise, double-faulted. The rest was history–Wimbledon history–as Serena rolled to the finish line and, for the third time, claimed a piece of fine china named after her sister: The Venus Rosewater Dish.

Venus Williams has nothing to hang her head about: Five wins at the Big W puts the elder Williams sister in very lofty company, behind a few ladies named (Martina) Navratilova, (Helen Wills) Moody, (Steffi) Graf, (Suzanne) Lenglen, and (Billie Jean) King. Moreover, the 29-year-old’s only losses in Wimbledon finals have come against her sister, meaning that eight of the past 10 ladies’ singles champions at this hallowed event are linked to the Williams family name. Serena felt the bitter taste of defeat after  last year’s loss to Venus. After a flipping of the script in 2009, big sis can’t feel as though her Wimbledon career has been anything less than fully satisfying.

In the end, perhaps the notions of a new owner at Centre Court are overblown. Instead of saying that Serena has purchased a summer cottage from Venus, it might be better to say that the Williamses are having one big celebration in their comfortable English residence. There might be a different champion at the All-England Club this time around, but the household in control of these luscious lawns remains very much the same. Serena Williams will merely be able to enjoy her summer a little more than her sister will.

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It’s true that Federer and Roddick played in the 2003 semifinals and the 2005 final at SW19, in two matches snatched by the Swiss in straight sets. Federer-Roddick used to be an annual event at Wimbledon before the Roger and Rafael Nadal Show came along in 2006. Yet, for all of their confrontations at the All-England Club, there’s zero question that a titanic tug-of-war in the 2004 Wimbledon final remains, even to this day, the most impactful match they shared on the same court.

Federer and Roddick have faced each other at every major tournament except the French Open, and in Roddick’s most recent slam final–at the 2006 U.S. Open–Federer was there to oppose his American rival. All those other meetings in other locales don’t carry much weight, however, when placed against the events of July 4, 2004, on the world’s most famous patch of grass.

Five years ago, Federer and Roddick loomed large as the two best players in tennis. Federer–the defending champion at SW19–had also won that year’s Australian Open, while Roddick was less than a year removed from his first major title at the 2003 U.S. Open. At a time when the French Open belonged only to dirtballing specialists (Gaston Gaudio and Guillermo Coria were rarely if ever heard from after they contested the 2004 French championship, won by Gaudio in five sets), Federer and Roddick were the kings of the fast surfaces which comprised three of the four majors. Seeded first and second at Wimbledon, the Swiss and the American raced toward the final Sunday of The Championships from opposite halves of the draw. Federer, not quite 23, seemed destined to win several slams before his career was through, while Roddick, just short of his 22nd birthday, appeared similarly primed for more Grand Slam glory after his victory in New York the year before. The buildup was high, the stakes considerable, the pressure on each man immense. And that was just the prelude.

When mortal combat actually began on Centre Court, the second-seeded Roddick served from a tree and bludgeoned the ball with his forehand. The American played power tennis to perfection, shortening points and blasting away before Federer could feel his way into rallies and find rhythm as a result. Depriving Federer of the tennis equivalent of oxygen, Roddick made sure his opponent couldn’t breathe. As a result of his simple but smart game plan, the American won the first set and–after Federer battled back to narrowly win the second–took a one-break lead over the top-seeded Swiss in the third.

Then, however, the fates intervened.

Anyone who followed men’s tennis before Rafael Nadal’s rise to prominence knows how the 2004 Wimbledon final turned on a dime. Before the classic 2008 final (between Nadal and Federer) that was delayed at the outset and then twice interrupted by rain, there was another gentlemen’s championship match that fell victim to the weather. With Roddick up 4-2 in the third set, rain began to fall on the grounds of the All-England Club. Roddick’s momentum was halted, while Fed was able to think about his tactics after the resumption of play. Sure enough, the pride of Switzerland was able to break Roddick shortly after the two men emerged from the locker room. With the third set back on serve, “The Artful Roger” was able to get into–and win–a tiebreak that took a lot of the air out of Roddick’s sails. Only a short while later, the world No. 1 was putting the finishing touches on a 4-6, 7-5, 7-6 (3), 6-4 victory.

The pundits and writers who watched the match knew that Federer received a stroke of good fortune, but they also noted that the Swiss–who did not have a coach at that point in his career–was smart enough to erase his third-set deficit by making the right adjustments. A potent poignancy characterized the post-match scene: Federer cried the way he so often does in a time of triumph, while Roddick–shocked by a loss on a day when he played so well–was left to wonder why the heavens opened up precisely when he had the top-ranked player in tennis on the run. Much could not be understood about the twists and turns of the 2004 Wimbledon final itself, but the lasting significance of the match proved far more elusive. The mystery of this momentous matchup would not be appreciated for a few more years.

Perhaps the 2004 tussle re-entered the minds of both men when Federer crushed Roddick in the 2005 final. Hitting 51 winners while conceding just 12 unforced errors, Federer flashed his vaunted “full-flight” game to deny Roddick any chance of creating a competitive match. The nearly flawless display gave credence to tennis observers who felt that the 2004 result gave Federer a forward push, injecting the Swiss machine with an even fuller tank of confidence. Yet, there was still a sense that Roddick–denied by a great player at Wimbledon–would still have his day in the sun.

That’s when Mr. Nadal entered the fray.

Despite his comparative lack of experience on grass, Nadal cherished Wimbledon more than any other tournament. Accordingly, the Spaniard’s hunger to succeed made itself manifest in a very short period of time. His legendary desire catapulted the 20-year-old to the 2006 final at Centre Court for a date with Federer. A loss in that match did absolutely nothing to dim Rafa’s resolve, and so it was that Nadal would swing the stick against the Swiss in 2007 and, of course, in the unforgettable 2008 epic that electrified the sports world. The truth was as painful as it was shocking for Andy Roddick: Despite his losses to Federer at Wimbledon, the American appeared to have more chances for championship riches, only to then witness Nadal steal the spotlight and become an unskakable, unbreakable force at No. 2 in the ATP rankings.

Anyone in professional tennis will tell you that the landscape shifts very quickly; Roddick, through little fault of his own, went from being a regular Wimbledon runner-up to a Grand Slam quarterfinalist. It’s not that Roddick declined; the harsh reality of the men’s game, circa 2006, was that Roger and Rafa were crowding almost everyone else out of the picture. In 2007 and early 2008, Novak Djokovic hit the big-time with an appearance in the U.S. Open final and the ’08 title in Australia. In the latter half of 2008, Andy Murray began to make his mark on tour with a Masters title in Cincinnati and a run to the U.S. Open final. Roddick, still trying to find his best tennis, possessed a work ethic worthy of his craft. The American, no longer the 21-year-old who fell to Federer in 2004, entered 2009 as a 26-year-old swimming in a sea of more talented sharks. In a few short years, the infusion of a few young studs–led by Nadal and then followed by the Djoker and Murray–severely reduced Roddick’s window of opportunity.

As for Federer? The Swiss–by the end of 2006–had become more than just “another great player.” With his second three-slam season but his first year of reaching all four major finals (with a 27-1 record, one win short of a calendar Grand Slam, which Rod Laver pulled off in both 1962 and ’69), the Swiss superstar entered especially elevated places in the tennis pantheon. If there was any doubt about the 2004 Wimbledon final’s effect on Fed’s career in 2005, the 2006 surge laid such questions to rest: Yes, that rain-aided escape against Andy Roddick really did open the floodgates to a career considered by many to be the greatest in the history of men’s tennis.

How fitting and fascinating it is, then, that five years after the match that did so much to alter the course of their journeys, Roger Federer and Andy Roddick meet again… at Wimbledon… in the final… with Nadal recuperating, Djokovic drifting, and Murray not yet ready to assume a mantel of Grand Slam greatness.

It’s time to party like it’s 2004, and if the underdog from the United States can make some magic against the 14-time Grand Slam champion, it will rank as one of the great comeback stories in the history of sports. Andy Roddick has had a good life in all respects, but if he can fell Roger Federer this one time, his current 2-18 record against the Swiss will cease to mean very much. Far more importantly, Roddick’s life on the court, between the painted white lines, will finally attain the completeness it’s been lacking for so many years… all because of that afternoon on July 4, 2004.

Time does stand still at Wimbledon, allowing the ghosts of the past to find cushy seats at Centre Court when champions are made and re-made. Sunday, those shadowy figures will loom over Andy Roddick’s shoulder. If the American can play the match of his life, he’ll never again be haunted by that day five years ago, when two careers began to acquire considerably divergent dimensions.

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Playing nothing less than the best tennis match of a career rich in prize money but poor in terms of Grand Slam championships, the sixth-seeded Roddick came through in the clutch to oust third-seeded favorite Andy Murray in four riveting sets. The 6-4, 4-6, 7-6 (7), 7-6 (5) win catapults Roddick into Sunday’s final against second-seeded Roger Federer, while ending Murray’s bid to become the first British male to reach a Wimbledon final since Bunny Austin turned the trick in 1938.

Just how sweet is this breakthrough for Roddick? Words frankly can’t do justice to the magnitude of the American’s achievement, built on the back of ice-veins composure under pressure.

The most immediately satisfying aspect of this match for Roddick is that his tennis rose to sublime heights precisely when the former world No. 1 needed his best brand of ball. At love-40 in the first game of the third set, Roddick was about to cede scoreboard leverage and real-world momentum to Murray, who stormed back to win set two after dropping the opening stanza. However, the American–perhaps channeling Pete Sampras (whose record for slam singles titles is shared by Federer, and could be fully eclipsed on Sunday unless Roddick says otherwise)–climbed out of that ditch with uncommon resolve.

Sampras won seven Wimbledons by making the occasional well-timed escape from a love-40 hole in a late-tournament match. Today, Roddick turned that trick by hitting a tremendous backhand stab volley at 30-40 to level to deuce, and then smacking big serves to prevent Murray from working his way into rallies. Roddick would break Murray in the fourth game of the third set and eventually establish a 5-2 lead with rare touch and precision at net (the American won 48 points at net, converting a healthy 64 percent of all forays to the twine), but when serving for the set at 5-3, a loose and distracted game, combined with an inspired backhand passing shot from the Scotsman at love-30, enabled Murray to stay alive and eventually force a massive tiebreak.

No worries for Roddick–despite blowing a big lead, the sixth seed would rally, and again, his net play showed the way forward.

After Murray hit his third ace in as many service points to grab a set point in the breaker at 6-5, Roddick–on his own serve–saved his hide by executing a forehand drop volley that barely eluded Murray’s reach. After the two players traded service points for 7-all, a penetrating Roddick return of a Murray first serve drew an error from the third seed, and at 8-7, Roddick–armed with the mini-break–was able to serve for the set. The sixth seed didn’t waste his big chance–he used his serve to gain a territorial advantage on the point, which ended when a smart backhand approach forced Murray to attempt a high-risk forehand pass well behind the baseline. The Scotsman couldn’t find the range, and Roddick forged a two-sets-to-one lead. Steel nerves under fire had shepherded the 26-year-old through one towering trial.

In the fourth set, Roddick would call upon that resourcefulness once more, as another set careened toward the clamorous conclusion known as a tiebreak.

Locked yet again in an equally-weighted war (Roddick won 143 total points in this match, Murray 141; how’s that for a fair fight?), these two dandy Andys didn’t create much daylight between them. The difference between a fifth set and crushing heartbreak for all England would once again come down to two points out of the 284 that were played on Friday. As was the case in set three, Roddick would own that precious pair.

The first key point of the tiebreak emerged at 2-1 Roddick, when Murray–on serve–lost hold of a forehand that sailed long and gave the American a mini-break lead, which meant a lot given the way the rest of the fourth set proceeded. Roddick successfully hit 75 percent of his first serves, and in the crucible of a fourth-set breaker, the sixth seed soared on serve. Slamming an ace or a service winner on each of his first five service points, Roddick gained double match point at 6-4. It was only then that Roddick failed to put a first serve in the court, and Murray–much to his credit–took advantage of the second ball by ripping a terrific passing shot to get back on serve at 5-6. Roddick still had a match point, but his dogged opponent now had the next two serves on his racket. It would take something special for the American to win on the court that Tim Henman couldn’t quite master, and which Murray hoped to own come Sunday evening against Federer.

Speaking of Federer, that’s the player Roddick evoked with the way he played his second match point. On the 12th point of this terrific tiebreak–the point that would make all the difference in a match that was worthy of a Wimbledon semifinal–Roddick did what Federer had done to him so many times before.

In their 2003 Wimbledon semifinal, and then back-to-back meetings in the 2004 and 2005 finals of The Championships, Federer foiled Roddick with one play above all others: the blocked first-serve return. This is not a return that’s meant to produce a winner, nor is it a service return meant to generate any kind of power or spin. The blocked return is simply an attempt to retrieve a bullet-like serve far enough into the court to prevent the server from having an easy put-away on the follow-up shot. If a blocked service return lands anywhere near the baseline, the server–contemplating his next move–must decide whether to hit an overhead or a forehand. The overhead could finish the point, but it carries more risk. The forehand is a higher-percentage shot, but it is less likely to produce an outright winner. The blocked return, then, allows a service receiver to establish a somewhat neutral position despite a 130-mile-per-hour bomb delivered by the server. It’s not a sexy play, and it doesn’t show up in highlights or stat sheets, but the blocked return is a winning play on grass, and it enabled Federer to win those three straight Wimbledon matches over Roddick, on the way to singles titles in each of those three years (2003-’05).

Simply stated, this 5-6 point began with a huge Murray first serve to the ad court corner of the service box. Roddick is not known for his return game (much as he entered this match with a reputation as a mediocre net player), but on this one occasion, he managed to block back a return within three feet of the baseline. Murray–who would normally have won a point with the huge first serve he just thundered–instead had to play a medium-pace forehand that allowed Roddick to get into that all-important netural position. Just a few strokes later, Roddick worked his way to the net behind something solid, and when Murray couldn’t hit the passing shot, the upset had been completed in the most ironic of ways: Andy Roddick, so often the victim of a blocked return at the hands of Roger Federer, had advanced to another Wimbledon final against his Swiss nemesis by imitating Federer in the heat of competition.

Murray–who cracked 76 winners and committed just 20 unforced errors–will only lament his 52 percent first-serve conversion rate, the one stat that truly hampered the British hope more than anything else. Other than his balky serve, the world No. 3 could not argue with the way he played. Murray simply ran into a man who–four years removed from his last Wimbledon final, and three years removed from his last Grand Slam finals appearance (the 2006 U.S. Open, also against Federer)–summoned forth the grittiest and gutsiest big-point tennis of his life.

Andy Roddick couldn’t have known that he would get back to the big stage on the final Sunday of any slam, let alone Wimbledon. Doubt and uncertainty have marked the past few years of an athletic odyssey pockmarked with potholes and stumbles and searing disappointments. But now, after conjuring up a considerable amount of courage in the face of a crowd that wanted the other Andy to win, Mr. Roddick has to feel that he can overcome any future challenges that come his way.

Sunday, that challenge is named Roger Federer. Cause for concern? Sure. Cause for fear or worry? Not for a man who has seen all the highs and lows of life on the ATP Tour, especially since the last time he faced Fed in a Wimbledon final.

Andy Roddick–fresh off the heels of this life-changing Friday in suburban London–will give everything he has when he faces Federer, and “everything” amounts to a lot when Roddick is the topic of discussion. Andy Murray could tell you as much after a superb semifinal showdown that created a wonderful and inspiring story… just not the one the British people were hoping to read in the Saturday papers.

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Federer made more record-keepers and stat geeks happy on Friday afternoon at Wimbledon, prevailing over Tommy Haas in the day’s first gentlemen’s singles semifinal. A close but convincing 7-6 (3), 7-5, 6-3 win over the 24th-seeded German carries Federer into Sunday’s championship match. The triumph possesses the added benefit of burnishing the Swiss superstar’s already gleaming credentials.

For the first two sets of this tussle, the action on the lawns of Centre Court looked a lot like the last match contested by these two men. One month ago in Paris, Federer and Haas dueled in the fourth round of the French Open. On that afternoon, the first two sets were decided by 7-6 and 7-5 scores, just like today’s tilt at SW19. Similarly to this Wimbledon sequel, Federer never faced a break point in France during the first set, while Haas–serving huge in his own right–steered the set to a tiebreak. In the second set on the red clay of Roland Garros, Haas made a late push at 5-all, breaking Federer for a two-set lead. Yes, the Swiss rallied over the final three sets to take that match in five, but for most of that day at Court Philippe Chatrier, Federer had little room for error against his friendly 31-year-old foe. The match was, without question, the toughest on Fed’s road to his elusive French Open title.

Friday at the All-England Club, Federer didn’t need five sets (or even four) to dismiss Haas, but the quality of the combat remained spirited and relatively even. The difference between Paris and suburban London–besides the playing surface, of course–was the fact that Federer managed to win the first-set tiebreak, thanks to a bold backhand return that gave the No. 2 seed a 5-3 mini-break advantage he would not relinquish. That display of composure on the part of Federer was enough to change the course of the competition. The 7-3 tiebreak win allowed the 14-time Grand Slam champion to breathe a little more freely. Had Haas been able to steal the first set, a replay of a June joust on red clay could have easily unfolded in early July on grass.

As it was, Haas still made a bold charge at the heavy favorite, pushing the second set to 5-all with continued clutch serving and a deceptively powerful backhand that gave the Swiss problems in extended rallies. Federer leaned on his serve for much of the match, but Haas often enjoyed a great amount of comfort from the baseline. Just one more service hold from a tiebreak, Haas had to feel optimistic about his prospects when he toed the line at 5-6 in the second set.

But that’s when the five-time Wimbledon champion decided to put his foot down.

Just as Haas secured a late break to win a 7-5 second set at the French, Fed turned the tables to snag a 7-5 second stanza in this particular passion play. While the German underdog struggled with his first serve and felt the weight of the moment, Federer ripped a crowd-pleasing crosscourt forehand to earn a break point that doubled as a set point. Just moments later, an extended rally–the kind of exchange Haas had been winning for most of the set–ended with the 24th seed overcooking a forehand. In the blink of an eye, a set that had “tiebreak” written all over it had become a portal to an easier afternoon for Federer.

Haas would stay in the thick of the fight through the first seven games of the third set, but at 3-4, the German fended off four break points, only to lose a fifth with a tired backhand into the net. Federer, who never faced a break point all afternoon and was rarely pushed to deuce in his own service games, cleanly served out the match at 5-3, sparing himself of the need for five sets of work. Haas acquitted himself well in a match that didn’t differ all that much from last month’s fistfight in France; Federer, however, won the handful of key points in the opening sets… the very same handful of points that didn’t go his way in Paris. That’s why statisticians and tennis historians have so much to write about before Sunday’s final.

Just what numbers are being bandied about as Federer marches onward at Wimbledon?

* 20. That’s the number of Grand Slam finals Fed has now reached, the most for any male tennis player. The Swiss entered the day tied with Ivan Lendl (19 slam finals), but now, the No. 2 seed is number one on the all-time list.

*16, 17. Federer’s win means that the Swiss has now reached 16 finals in the past 17 slam tournaments, a phenomenal stretch of excellence made possible by his greatest streak, the run of 21 consecutive appearances in slam semifinals. Speaking of slam semis…

* 18-3. This win over Haas gives Federer an 18-3 record in that span of 21 straight Grand Slam semifinals. The other two semifinal wins in Fed’s slam career came before the beginning of that 21-tournament streak.

* 7. Pete Sampras might have won seven Wimbledons, the most in history, but he didn’t win them by reaching the finals on an uninterrupted basis. Federer has “only” five titles at this prestigious tournament, but this triumph today allows the world No. 2 to appear in a seventh straight Wimbledon final, a distinction unmatched by any other man in history. William Renshaw (1882-’87), Wilfred Baddeley (1891-’96), and Bjorn Borg (1976-’81) all reached six straight Wimby finals (in the era shared by Renshaw and Baddeley, the defending champion gained an automatic berth into the final), but Fed now stands alone at seven.

* 6. Federer has an active streak of six straight Grand Slam finals.

* 1. No, that’s not Federer’s current world ranking (though it will be when Wimbledon ends), but it points to the number of people other than Rafael Nadal who have beaten Federer at a Grand Slam event since the 2005 French Open. That’s right–only one man other than Rafa has beaten Fed in the past 18 majors: Novak Djokovic in the 2008 Australian Open.

That’s enough numbers for now. If Federer wins on Sunday, we all know what number will dominate the headlines then: 15.

Not much needs to be said on that count.

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Yes, Serena claimed this classic confrontation, 6-7 (4), 7-5, 8-6, in 2 hours and 49 minutes before an enthralled and effusive Centre Court crowd, but the main storyline of this heartstopper-a heavenly chorus in the cathedral of tennis–was that for once, Dementieva shared the Grand Slam spotlight with the 10-time major champion, instead of shrinking from it.

Indeed, when a measure of this match is taken, tennis historians will be sure to realize that while Serena–still the best closer in the women’s game–showcased the full range of her talents under pressure, it was Dementieva who was responsible for allowing Thursday’s thriller to attain such lofty heights.

Dementieva’s tennis journey has been a lucrative one (over $11 million so far), but a life on the WTA Tour has not netted the 27-year-old a Grand Slam trophy. Dementieva reached two major finals in 2004, but memorably choked at the French Open (against Anastasia Myskina) and faltered at the U.S. Open (versus Svetlana Kuznetsova). Since that season, Dementieva hasn’t been able to get back to the finals of a top-tier tournament. This match on famed Centre Court marked the Russian’s fourth semifinal appearance in her past five majors, but that consistency was somewhat overshadowed by Dementieva’s failure to win any of those matches. A fixture in the top 5 but a rarity in championship matches at the most coveted events of the year, this vexing veteran needed to play against type if she was to remain competitive against Serena’s expected onslaught.

Oh, how Dementieva answered that clarion call.

On this electrifying afternoon, the No. 4 seed did endure her share of hiccups, such as a botched backhand that allowed Serena to take the second set, and a nervous forehand that allowed the Serena to break back early in the third set after the Russian took a 3-1 lead. With that said, Dementieva didn’t descend into a pool of self-pity the way she normally has in semifinal slam showdowns. Whenever Dementieva dumped a ball into the net or sprayed a makeable shot wide of the sideline, she was able to play highlight-reel points immediately afterward. Forgetting her mistakes with uncommon poise, Dementieva exhibited the clearheaded crispness that elite athletes bring to the table in high-stakes situations. Adversity has typically toppled “Demmy” with ease in high-profile matches, but on July 2, 2009, this WTA workhorse found the tunnel vision that had eluded her for so long. Several instances revealed this encouraging development for Dementieva:

* Despite having to serve just to stay in the first set–at 4-5 and 5-6–Dementieva, long known as a fragile flower at the service line, stood tall on Thursday. The Russian wore out the corners of each service box, placing her first serves near the lines with a considerable amount of pace. No longer hitting cream-puff second serves as well, Demmy was able to hold for 5-all and 6-all, steering the set into a tiebreak that the Russian won when a Serena forehand landed just wide.

* In the second set, Serena–in the most controversial moment of the match–used a challenge from Hawkeye to save a break point at 3-4. Regular television replays indicated that Serena’s forehand hit the baseline, but was just wide of the right sideline. Hawkeye disagreed, however, and the second-seeded American made the most of her second chance by holding for 4-all. Normally, that kind of turnaround would have shaken Dementieva’s nerves, but in the next game, she held serve and stayed in the hypnotic trance that carried her through the day’s play.

* After she briefly flinched to hand back her break lead early in the third set, Dementieva then held convincingly in each of her next four service games. What was especially remarkable was that after Serena saved match point and held for 5-all in the deciding set, Dementieva shrugged off that disappointment to hold for 6-5.

* In a larger context, Dementieva–slugging with distinction for nearly three full hours–inevitably encountered a tidal wave of frustrating moments when the prospect of victory faded as soon as it appeared. (Any tennis pro will meet with such experiences in a match that runs long.) Yet, to the very end, the Russian was playing high-level tennis, giving as good as she got against the most accomplished player of the 21st century. This version of Demmy will win a Grand Slam; the key will be for the 27-year-old to maintain the mindset that served her so well this Wimbledon.

Now, what to say about Serena that hasn’t already been said?

Quite simply, a cinch for the International Tennis Hall of Fame actually managed to increase her stature in the sport with her performance against Dementieva. Serena Jameka Williams threw down 20 aces, most of them in the crucible provided by the latter stages of the third set. When down match point at 4-5, 30-40 in the third, Serena–who won just 9 of 19 net points on the day–had the courage to come to the net and correctly read a Dementieva passing shot. The Russian chose to go crosscourt, and Serena leaped to her left to knock off a backhand volley to stay alive.

As the heat of battle only grew more intense, Serena would play even better.

At 5-6 and deuce, the younger Williams sister traded sizzling two-handed backhands with Demmy, in a fearsome rally of breathtaking proportions. Serena’s final backhand was so viciously struck that it knocked the Russian to the ground. On the very next point, a dazzling, all-court rally ended with Serena nailing an artfully curled crosscourt forehand passing shot to level for 6-all. In the following game, Serena–twice fighting for her life in her own service games–decided to apply pressure to Demmy’s serve by ripping her returns and remaining willing to come to net. A steely volley at 6-all, 15-all landed on the baseline to give the No. 2 seed a 15-30 opening. A few points later, at 30-40, Serena uncorked a nasty return and, with the court pried open, hit a down-the-line forehand behind Dementieva to secure a break lead at 7-6.

With no final-set tiebreaks at Wimbledon, Serena had attained considerable scoreboard leverage, and when serving for the match at 7-6, that leverage turned into victory.

Finally able to serve for yet another Wimbledon final, Serena allowed her first serve to carry her to the finish line. Losing two points on second serves, Serena won all four first-serve points in the 14th and final game of the third set. When a Dementieva backhand barely missed the left sideline on match point, an unquestioned classic was complete.

Elena Dementieva simply played the best tennis match of her entire life, and yet, in the end, she still lost. That’s all you need to know about one of the great women’s tennis players of all time, and it’s a fair way of summarizing one of the most memorable matches in Wimbledon’s 132-year history.

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In a riveting, rousing affair matching former world No. 1s and Grand Slam champions, Roddick nipped Australian star Lleyton Hewitt, 6-3, 6-7 (10), 7-6 (1), 4-6, 6-4, in 3 hours and 50 minutes. The richly-deserved triumph carries the No. 6 seed into the “Andys Mountains” for a battle with a lad named Murray on Friday. Just as importantly, the victory wipes away the bitter taste of one of the most searing defeats in Roddick’s very successful career.

To understand the magnitude of this close-shave escape for Roddick against a longtime rival, you have to go back to the 2007 edition of The Championships. Roddick–in the very same quarterfinal round–took a two-set lead on France’s Richard Gasquet, and served for a semifinal appearance at 5-4 in the third. But Gasquet improbably broke Roddick, pulled out the third set, and raced home with the final two sets to win in five and leave a 24-year-old Roddick reeling. The force of that loss was so substantial that the 2003 U.S. Open champion did not make the semis at another major tournament until this year’s Australian Open. With the ascendancy of Rafael Nadal and the emergence of both Murray and Novak Djokovic on the ATP Tour, the past few years have marked lean times for Roddick, who–through 2005–was a player who could be counted on to play deep into Wimbledon and face Roger Federer in the semis or the final.

The Gasquet loss was damaging in and of itself, but that match had another adverse effect which Roddick simply couldn’t control. Critics have lost sight of the fact that other players have gotten better in recent years. Pundits–instead of viewing Roddick as a modestly-talented man whose hard work has carried him to considerable heights–have chosen to wonder why Roddick hasn’t appeared in more major finals or scored big wins against the likes of Federer and Nadal. In truth, Roddick has continued to squeeze every ounce of talent at his disposal; his only sin is losing to the top few players on the planet.

Because of the negative scrutiny that would automatically attach itself to any of Roddick’s losses–particularly at the slams–the American, who has rarely been afraid to disguise his emotions at press conferences or on the court, internalized the stress and pressure that began to rain down upon him. At least, that’s what his 2007 and 2008 tennis seasons indicated. Drifting through a period of doubt, Roddick knew he had to make a change, and in November of last year, a struggling player offered a man named Larry Stefanki the chance to retool a career in need of a boost.

Stefanki has established himself as one of the top coaches in men’s tennis. Having worked with John McEnroe toward the end of his career, Stefanki then tutored another pair of world No. 1s, Chile’s Marcelo Rios and Russia’s Yevgeny Kafelnikov, in the late 1990s. Earlier this decade, Stefanki molded Chilean Fernando Gonzalez into the 2007 Australian Open runner-up, and was coaching Gonzalez when Roddick dialed his number. Stefanki was persuaded to make the change, and the results have vindicated the decision-making instincts of both player and coach.

Roddick, under Stefanki’s guidance, lost 15 pounds. That fact alone has made the American a fitter, faster player with better defensive skills and superior endurance. Those qualities–not seen in older incarnations of Roddick–helped the flailing 24-year-old of 2007 morph into a confident marathon man of 2009. More to the point, those qualities enabled Roddick to return to the late rounds of major tournaments. The top-ranked player in America reached the semis of this year’s Australian Open, before posting the best French Open showing of his career (the fourth round). Yet, as much as Roddick had to be encouraged by what he achieved in Melbourne and Paris, this act of survival against Hewitt has to rate as an even more redemptive moment.

Roddick cried at the end of this victory for many reasons, but one likely source of the American’s emotional outpouring was that he beat Hewitt at the Australian’s own game. Very simply, Roddick’s fitness won him this match.

On Wednesday, the 26-year-old Roddick and the 28-year-old Hewitt were battling just as fiercely as they had in the past, with the Australian refusing to fold the tent after losing the first and third sets. An unyielding effort allowed Hewitt to win the second and fourth sets, pushing the quarterfinal collision to a deciding stanza before an enraptured English audience. Normally, a fifth set is Hewitt’s domain; the Aussie entered this match 29-13 in five-setters, an unsurprising fact given Hewitt’s identity as the man who would never lose a tennis match due to physical limitations. Hewitt built his game and his reputation on conditioning and stamina; you’d always have to hit several extra balls to win points offf Hewitt, and usually, he’d run down more balls than opponents could throw at him. In the 2001 U.S. Open, Hewitt and Roddick–then 20 and 19 years old, respectively–locked up in a contentious quarterfinal under the lights in New York. The two men traded punches deep into the night, but in set number five, Hewitt owned the fresher legs and more positive body language. It was just one of many times when the diminutive Australian wore down a forceful foe. Without his peak fitness level, Hewitt never would have attained a fraction of what he ultimately did as a tennis pro.

How sweet it must have been, then–achingly sweet, in fact–for Roddick to turn the tables and beat Hewitt with his own fresher legs. The American–having saved break points with big serves in the early part of the fifth set–ultimately broke Hewitt at 4-all by running down shots. Roddick’s court coverage, combined with a reliable two-handed backhand, surprised Hewitt on a break point, and when the Aussie could only hit a tame half-volley off an attempted Roddick passing shot, the American raced toward the net and put away an easy forehand to grab a 5-4 lead.

Once again given the chance to serve out a Wimbledon quarterfinal at 5-4 on Court 1, Roddick didn’t crack under pressure. Hewitt did get to 30-all, but a forehand approach shot and a well-struck passing shot gave Roddick the final two points he needed. After three Wimbledons with premature exits, Andy Roddick battled back to the semifinals with the kind of lunch-pail persistence… and the help of 15 recently-shed pounds.

It’s true in many more ways than one: Andy Roddick is losing baggage. No longer weighted down physically or mentally, this mainstay of the top 10 is back where he belongs at the Big W. If he can derail the other Andy in Friday’s semis, Roddick will find himself competing for his first-ever Wimbledon championship.

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Haas not only turned back fourth-seeded Novak Djokovic in Wednesday’s quarterfinals; the 24th-seeded German did much to dispel the demons that have followed the veteran throughout his rollercoaster career.

Haas’s 7-5, 7-6 (6), 4-6, 6-3 victory on Court No. 1 was more than a hard day’s work at a lawn-coated office. This tennis graybeard wiped away the bitter taste of collapses and letdowns that accumulated over time.

Last week, as Haas had to spend a night sleeping over a 6-all fifth-set tie in his third round match against Marin Cilic, the former world No. 2–ravaged by all sorts of injuries and the psychological strain stemming from a motorcycle accident that nearly killed his parents–had to confront the ghosts of a snake-bitten past. Haas needed to come to grips with the blown two-set leads, the failures in five-set matches, and all the obstacles that stood in the way of a career resurgence after missing all of 2003 with a rotator cuff injury. When he did beat Cilic in the resumption of that match, Haas began to write a new narrative in suburban London, and this jolting of Djokovic marked a crowning continuation of that journey.

There were two moments in this match when the old Tommy Haas would have cracked and crumbled, allowing the Serb to advance to Friday’s semifinals. The first such occasion emerged at the end of the second set, when Haas–serving for a two-set lead at 6-5–missed an easy forehand at love-15 to help Djokovic break back and force a tiebreak. That untimely error sent Haas’s mind into a familiarly dark place, and after a series of loose groundstrokes, particularly from the forehand wing, the German found himself trailing, 6-3, in the breaker. Djokovic had three set points, and what was left of Haas’s early advantage was about to be cleared off the scoreboard.

But a funny thing happened on the way to a tied tennis match: Haas transformed himself in a hurry.

Belting two huge serves to knock off the first two set points, Haas then smacked a perfect down-the-line backhand to knot the breaker at 6-all. After Djokovic–in his most costly mistake of the whole afternoon–overhit an easy forehand put-away to give Haas set point, the No. 24 seed finished an extended rally with an above-average stab volley to take the second set. In just a few precious minutes, Haas went from a free-fall into free-flowing bliss. Armed with a big advantage, the underdog didn’t have to be perfect as the third set dawned, but he did have to find a way to close down Djokovic before too long.

In the fourth set, Haas pounced when the time was right, elevating his concentration at the first whiff of opportunity.

Djokovic played a tired and distracted game in which Haas broke for a 3-1 lead. Yet, the timeless wisdom of tennis says that a break isn’t a break unless or until it’s consolidated, and when Haas stared down the barrel of a 30-30 situation later in the fourth set, his nerves would receive a test similar to the second-set tiebreak.

On that 30-all point in the fifth game of the fourth set, Djokovic flashed some superb defense, forcing Haas to retreat from a winning position and choose between hitting an overhead or a traditional forehand from just inside the baseline. Haas chose to hit the overhead, a risky decision given the low margin for error on the shot. In the past, Haas would almost certainly have netted the ball, but on this day, the new-look German blotted out the gremlins and goblins that had bedeviled him once upon a time. Haas nailed the overhead to win the point and eventually hold for 4-1. Djokovic’s last, best hope for a comeback evaporated, and when Haas used some heavy, high-kicking second serves to fight through his final service game, the semifinal berth had been securely tucked away. Not bad for an old man who had never reached the semis at a major tournament other than the Australian Open.

While Djokovic will curse his subpar return of serve, and lament his inability to push past the quarterfinal round of a slam (the Serb has made just one semifinal in his past five majors), a 31-year-old with a lifetime’s worth of upheavals will rightly celebrate a special achievement that is magnified by its long-delayed nature.

Tommy Haas has been fleeing from his demons for years. On Wednesday, in the Wimbledon quarterfinals, he finally decided to chase them away. Roger Federer and Andy Murray might be the odds-on favorites at the All England Club, but when Semifinal Friday commences, it’s Haas who offers a winning story, a tale of perseverance in the face of life’s countless curveballs and absurdities.

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Gentlemen’s Quarterfinals – All Matches on Wednesday

Top Half of Draw

Lleyton Hewitt vs. (6) Andy Roddick; (3) Andy Murray vs. Juan Carlos Ferrero

Hewitt, at 28, is one of the many old-guard faces in this crowd of Wimbledon men. The average age of the gentlemen’s quarterfinalists is 27 years and 4 months; the only two competitors younger than Roddick’s 26 are Murray and Novak Djokovic (who resides in the bottom half of the draw). Hewitt has fought admirably to get to this stage so late in his career. The Australian has been hampered for much of the past two years by injuries, but the two-time Grand Slam champion has worked his way back to a major quarterfinal for the first time since 2006. Congratulations and commendations are in order for “Rusty,” but that’s all he should expect as the tournament moves forward. Hewitt: PRETENDER.

Roddick isn’t winning tournaments, but the man now coached by Larry Stefanki–who guided Fernando Gonzalez to the 2007 Australian Open final and worked with John McEnroe in the past–has become even more consistent at this stage in his career. Roddick has reached the quarterfinals or semifinals of each significant fast-surface tournament on the calendar: The Australian (semis), Indian Wells (semis), Miami (quarters), and now Wimbledon. In addition to those performances on hardcourt and grass, Roddick attained his best-ever showing at the French (fourth round), and also made the quarterfinals of the Masters-level Madrid Open event in may. A leaner, faster Roddick has improved his defense and added a small amount of juice to his groundstrokes. He still can’t excel at net, but then again, today’s men’s game doesn’t place a lot of emphasis on one’s volleying skills. Can this veteran win the title that’s eluded him for so long? It’s entirely possible: Roddick won’t have to deal with Roger Federer until the final, and even then, the newly-married man might not even have to face the Swiss if he earns a ticket to Sunday’s showcase. Roddick: CONTENDER.

Murray cruised through his first three rounds, but in round four, the Scotsman was ambushed by nerves and an inconsistent forehand that betrayed him repeatedly. Murray destroyed Stanislas Wawrinka in the round of 16 at the 2008 U.S. Open, but the No. 3 seed needed five erratic sets to get the job done on this occasion. Yet, all that matters in championship tennis (besides health, of course) is being able to advance, especially when all cylinders are not firing as they should. Murray would have lost the Wawrinka match two years ago; now, the 22-year-old possesses far more maturity. That should certainly serve him well in the coming days. Murray: CONTENDER.

Ferrero is the first wild card recipient to ride that generous invitation into the quarterfinals since Goran Ivanisevic made the round of eight–and then went on to win Wimbledon outright–in 2001. The joyride over the past nine days has served as a deliciously satisfying moment for “The Mosquito,” who–for a former world No. 1–has kept a low profile over the past several years on tour. That under-the-radar identity would cease to exist if Ferrero were to upend Murray on Wednesday. Don’t expect that to happen. Ferrero: PRETENDER.

Bottom Half

(24) Tommy Haas vs. (4) Novak Djokovic; (22) Ivo Karlovic vs. (2) Roger Federer

Haas, a former world No. 2 and a man who twice took Federer to a fifth set in the fourth round of a Grand Slam (last month’s French Open, but also the fourth round of the 2006 Australian Open), is to be taken seriously. Fortunately, Djokovic knows that already. The Serb lost to Haas in the final of the Gerry Weber Open in Halle, Germany, a few weeks ago. Haas owns some fabulously crisp groundstrokes, but the mentally erratic performer is not the kind of guy who is ready to win three matches against top-tier opponents. Haas: PRETENDER.

Djokovic’s down period–bridging the Madrid Open and the French Open–is apparently over. The No. 4 seed is playing like one of the big boys in men’s tennis, and that means any of his opponents–Federer and Murray very much included–will need to play close to their very best if they want to deny the Djoker his second Grand Slam crown. Djokovic: CONTENDER.

Karlovic might be playing in his first-ever slam quarterfinal at age 30, but with the way the 6-10 Croatian is throwing down service bombs, inexperience really doesn’t matter all that much. Perhaps “Doctor Ivo” will flinch in one more tiebreak than he can afford; then again, remember that another huge-serving stud picked off one Wimbledon, despite a lack of long-term credentials in the sport: Richard Krajicek. The Dutchman served Pete Sampras off the court in the 1996 quarterfinals, and eventually rolled to the title against Malivai Washington. Karlovic could be this year’s Krajicek; he has the ability–and the surging confidence–to pull off the coup. He’s more than just a floater if he can threaten the foe named Federer. Do take note of Ivo’s one big liability going forward: The Croatian is 0-11 in five-set matches at slams in his career. Karlovic: CONTENDER.

Gee–Federer wouldn’t be anything but a contender. What must be said, though, is that while the Swiss is in fine form at The Championships, the draw is not being kind to the 14-time major champion (which is thematically and situationally appropriate; the man has to earn these crowns if he wants to add to his already-considerable stature). Karlovic could serve Federer out of Wimbledon in much the same way that Michael Stich hit Stefan Edberg out of SW19 in the 1991 semifinals: Namely, by winning three tiebreaks despite failing to break Edberg’s serve. Karlovic shouldn’t get many sniffs against Fed’s serve, but if Ivo is serving up aces left and right, it might not matter. The quarterfinals will be enough of a challenge for Federer; a potential semi against Djokovic wouldn’t be a walk in the park; neither would a possible final against Murray. Fed’s playing well, but he might have to be even better in the days ahead if he wants to keep moving on. Federer: CONTENDER.

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Big sister Venus and little sister Serena served notice that they intend to reunite for yet another Wimbledon final. Starting the day two matches away from a fourth encounter in the championship match at SW19, the greatest sibling act in sports now stands one round removed from the promised land. Venus destroyed Poland’s Agnieszka Radwanska, 6-1, 6-2, while Serena smacked around Belarus’s Victoria Azarenka, 6-2, 6-3. The dominating wins send the sisters into the semifinals on Thursday, against a pair of Russians who will be heavy underdogs. Venus will be opposed by leg-weary Dinara Safina in one semifinal, while Serena will take on Elena Dementieva in the other match on Centre Court.

Based on the form they displayed on Ladies’ Day, Venus and Serena are once again setting the standard by which all their peers must be measured. In this Justine Henin-free world, a tennis terrain stripped of the one woman who could credibly attack and defuse the arsenals of these supreme sisters from the hardscrabble American streets of Compton, California, Venus and Serena stand alone at the top of the women’s game. Safina might own the No. 1 ranking in the sport due to consistency on a 52-week-a-year basis, but when the majors arrive, it’s the Williams family that rakes in the cash and the trophies. Such an outcome is to be expected at the Big W, which stands for “Williams” as well as “Wimbledon.”

Venus and Serena own seven Wimbledon titles between them, and have met in three prior finals (2002, 2003, 2008). This year, an all-Williams final would net the sisters just under 1.3 million pounds. The battle would be to determine who would get the 850,000-pound first-place check, and who would “settle” for the 425,000-pound second place prize. If the victors claim the spoils in competitive athletics, the Williams family has been doubling its share of spoils in recent years at SW19.

As one could imagine, there simply wasn’t any suspense to be found in either sister’s quarterfinal conquest against an Eastern European opponent. When two players combine to concede just eight total games (three for Venus, five for Serena), it’s clear that a backyard whipping is taking place. When Serena rips 13 winners and commits just 1 unforced error, as she did in the first set against an accomplished top-10 opponent such as Azarenka, it’s of little use to say anything more; added details would only confuse the issue instead of clarifying it.

All one needs to say is that the Williams sisters were overwhelmingly good–scarily, enduringly, distinctively good on Tuesday. They didn’t let their opponents breathe, submerging Radwanska and Azarenka in a flood of shots that reflected both an aggressive mindset and precise execution. Justine Henin could have been competitive with the sisters today, but for all of the retired Belgian’s many on-court gifts, she wouldn’t have been (and has never been) imposing enough to take down Venus or Serena under anything less than optimal circumstances. These two quarterfinal spankings clearly showed that both sisters are humming with efficiency and reveling in their athletic superiority over the rest of the ladies’ singles field.

You can be their biggest fan or their harshest critic (goodness knows there’s a large number of both groups), but no one can deny that after more than a decade on the WTA Tour, the sisters Williams haven’t lost much of anything in the cauldron of major-championship pressure. Once again, Venus and Serena tower over every other woman at Wimbledon. Two successful semifinals on Thursday will only magnify the might of the family dynasty that still holds sway in women’s tennis.

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