rogerfederer.com - Roger's finals run stopped

Roger's finals run stopped

Roger has been defeated in straight sets in the semifinal of the Australian Open. His opponent, Novak Djokovic, came back from 3-5 in the first set to win the match at 7-5, 6-3, 7-6 (7-5).

Novak Djokovic was simply too strong, too steady. Where Roger inched past him in the last grand slam final - the U.S. Open last September - this time the Serb was always a nose ahead. "I think he made the more important points today, it was a bit unfortunate for me," Roger commented. "It depends a lot on form, you can't always play your best. It's not easy coming out every week trying to win. You'll always run into fellow top-10 players or other guys who are on a streak or on a hot run or surprise you."

Roger added he was far from his best in the Rod Laver Arena, but said he gave everything he had to try and get back into the match."There's some sort of a disappointment. But from the spirit, the way I fought, the way I tried, it's all I could give," he said.

This defeat was Roger's first in straight sets at a grand slam since he lost to Gustavo Kuerten in the 2004 French Open.The holder of 12 grand slam crowns, his chase of Pete Sampras's record 14 is now on ice until the 2008 French Open begins in May.