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Looking as strong as ever, the US Open defending champion managed to outplay the Argentinean in three straight sets, 6-2, 7-6 (3), 6-4, to earn his 10^th consecutive trip into a Grand Slam semifinals. But despite what you might make out of the overwhelming three set win, Del Potro had a fabulous game against the Serb. The match included a thrilling 20-stroke game that could have only come from a matchup between two previous US Open Championship. Some dozen shots into the play, Del Potro sprinted with his back to the court, got to the ball and lofted a lob the other way. It was a miracoulous save. Djokovic responded with a slamming  overhead. Del Potro somehow kept the ball in play right in front of the net. Djokovic laced a drop shot. Again, del Potro got there, attempting another lob. This time, it landed a little long.

This was the turning point of the matchup. Del Po was never able to get back into the game after this point. Juan Martin del Potro had defeated Novak Djokovic on their previous matchup as both went on head to head for the bronze medal in the London 2012 Summer Olympics. At the end, when it came to the bigger stage, it was the Djoker making the best out of that matchup. “We played some incredible rallies and incredible points,” the second-seeded Djokovic said. “It’s always entertaining, always so much fun, playing in these night sessions.” This was by far the first real test for Novak in the 2012 US Open. Let’s not forget that for the better part of the tournament, Djokovic just kept on rolling over his opponents. As a matter of fact, he hasn’t loss a single set yet.

But if anyone was going to give him a fight, a run for his money, that was going to be the tall and slender Argentine that kept on smacking down 100 mph forehands. Just to put this into the right perspective, consider for a moment that Djokovic’s and del Potro’s second set alone lasted 84 minutes. That is, 11 more minutes than the Djoker’s entire first round match last week. It is really a shame that Argentinean player has not been able to reach his full potential since he last won the tournament at Flushing Meadows. Injuries have really kept him from staying constant in the tour. Let’s not forget that he was sidelined for most of the 2010 season because of a right wrist injury that required surgery. Last year he had some issues with his lower back and to make things more complicated earlier this year he had problems with his left wrist, an injury that has limited the effectiveness of his two-fisted backhand.

Djokovic will now face the fourth-seeded David Ferrer in the semifinals on Saturday. Ferrer had to rely heavily on his speed and skill to defeat eighth-seeded Janko Tipsarevic of Serbia 6-3, 6-7 (5), 2-6, 6-3, 7-6 (4) in 4 hours, 31 minutes. The other quarterfinal will be played between Olympic gold medalist Andy Murray and Thomas Berdych of the Czech Republic, who pulled off an amazing upset over Roger Federer last night. Stay tuned for more action at the 2012 US Open.

Rhyne Williams is a 21-year-old qualifier into the US Open at Flushing Meadows. He was thrilled to be playing his first ever Grand Slam tournament. Rhyne had a decent run earlier this season, and the 2011 runner-up of the NCAA title, had been invited into the Open. He actually won three matches in the qualifying stages of the US Open and was maybe hoping that he could make it pass the first round. Though luck I guess, because Williams had to face No. 28^th ranked player in the world, and he just simply didn’t hold a chance against the 30-year-old veteran Andy Roddick. Sure enough, Roddick’s career hasn’t really reached it’s full potential because of the series of injuries that have one after another affected his game over the years. One thing is clear though: despite the years, the injuries his serve is still without par in the tour. He finished off a 6-3, 6-4, 6-4 win against Williams with 20 aces. Oh yeah, and he finished it off with style. He shot a 141mph ace to close the first set; a 134mph ace to close the second; a 127mph bullet to close the third.

Then again, we have to remember one thing: Roddick knows exactly what it takes to win the championship. After all, he is the 2003 US Open, and he knows he has to rely heavily on his serve now that he is playing against other players who once used to cheer for him. Let’s not forget that by the time Roddick won his last Grand Slam, Rhyne Williams of Knoxville, Tennessee was only a 12-year-old kid. It’s been a while sicne the 2003 US Open. It’s been a very long time particularly for USA Tennis.  That was the last Grand Slam singles title for an American man, the longest drought in history. Let’s put this drought into perspective, we are talking about the country that produced the likes of Pete Sampras, Andre Agassi, John McEnroe and Jimmy Connors.

Andy Roddick is not to keen to talk about his future, or about a possible retirment coming up soon. After all, it’s been a long while since he last won a Grand Slam and it’s very hard to live under the shadow of both Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal for the better part of a decade. Still, Roddick was making his 13th consecutive U.S. Open appearance yesterday. Many fans, many sports commentators have considered Roddick to be an underachiever. Still, with his training and by the looks of what he put out on the court today, he is willing to alter the expectations this time around, and hopes to be a real contender down the stretch.

In other related news, Novak Djokovic, the other player that next to Rafa Nadal and Roger Federer have dominated the Grand Slam circuit, is looking quite strong again this year. The U.S. Open defending title began his run by overwhelming 69th-ranked Paolo Lorenzi of Italy 6-1, 6-0, 6-1 on Tuesday night. Lorenzi never held a chance against Djokovic who is trying to repeat his win.

Once they closed the roof of Centre Court at the All England Club in Wimbledon, the Scottish Andy Murray simply held no chance to defeat the Swiss Maestro. Roger Federer was as dominant and as hungry for titles as he has ever been, and gave Murray no chance despite the support he was getting from the locals. Murray became the first British man to reach the finals at Wimbledon since 1938, so sure enough, the fans had their hopes set on 25-year-old Scotsman. And for a moment there this was certainly his best shot ever at winning a Grand Slam. Roger Federer proved that at 30 he’s still got a lot to give and that his career is far from over. The Swiss Maestro grabbed his 7^th title after beating Andy Murray 4-6, 7-5, 6-3, 6-4 on Sunday.

Let it there be no doubt: Roger Federer has recovered the No.1 spot in the ATP rankings and has done so in spectacular fashion. He managed to conquer his record-tying 7^th title at the All English Club in Wimbledon, and got his long-awaited 17^th Grand Slam title, just to make it clear that he really does have a strong argument to hold the title for the best tennis player ever. He is now officially reaching his 286^th week as the top-ranked player in the World, reaching the all-time record holder Pete Sampras, and surely, it’s now going to impose and take over. So, the correlations are all there. For those who had ever made a case for Sampras been the best player ever, little by little and before reaching his 31^st birthday, Roger Federer is coming down and breaking all the records.

His 7^th Wimbledon title ties him with Pete Sampras, and you would have to go back to the XIX Century to find another player who has won 7 titles here. Only 1880s player William Renshaw has also won seven Wimbledon titles. Then again, this came at a period in the tournament when the defending champion was given a bye into the following year’s final. So, it’s certainly not the same thing, but you get the idea. Still, the local fans had their hopes set on Murray, but once the roof was closed and there was no more wind, Federer won 65 of the 117 points played indoors, and it was all over for Murray.

This was a big win. This is going to fuel him into the next few seasons, and hopefully give him what it takes to clinch his 18^th Grand Slam title. Even Pete Sampras came out to talk about his success.  “He doesn’t want to stop now,” Sampras said in a telephone interview in regards to Federer’s win. “He knows he’s going to continue to play well and try to break seven, and he could very well end up with eight or nine Wimbledon titles. I just think he’s that much better than the other guys on grass, and he loves the court the way I loved that court. He’s a great champion, a classy champion, and I’m really happy for him.”

David Ferrer was born on April 2^nd, 1982 in Valencia, Spain. Ever since he turned a professional at the turn of the century, the clay court specialist has lived under the shadow of his fellow countryman Rafael Nadal. And it’s not as if the second best ranked Spaniard hasn’t been doing well for himself. On the contrary, he has proved his worth especially in the last three years. Let’s not forget for a moment there that he reached the semifinals of the 2012 French Open, proving that he’s strong hold is set over the red crushed brick clay of Paris, but he has also has had success on hard courts. For instance, Ferrer made it to the semifinals of the the 2007 US Open and 2011 Australian Open. As a bonus, perhaps, he was part of the Spain Davis Cup team that won the finals in 2008, 2009 and 2011. But despite holding some good numbers and plenty of tournament wins, his resume is just not in the same league as that of one Rafael Nadal.

Even though the grass courts of the All English club have by no means been his forte, this year, the 30-year-old Spaniard is proving that his got what it takes to become a real contender down the stretch. Ranked 6^th in the World by the ATP Rankings, Ferrer has placed himself in a very interesting position this year at Wimbledon. He managed to defeat Andy Roddick 2-6, 7-6(8), 6-4, 6-3 in the third round of the latest Grand Slam, but he also did so, just two days after Rafael Nadal suffered one of the most exciting upsets we’ve seen in years when Nadal was stunned by Lukas Rosol of the Czech Republic 6-7(9-11), 6-4, 6-4, 2-6, 6-4. Rosol was certainly more powerful and his very strong serve proved to be a little too much for the Spaniard who just couldn’t keep up with the Czech’s rhythm. Ferrer will now have to face the argentine Juan Martin del Potro in the fourth round of the 2012 Wimbledon Championships.

Both Ferrer and Roddick arrived to the third round with a strong run. They both had had a good run at ‘s-Hertogenbosch and Eastbourne respectively, and even though Ferrer had a short 6-4 advantage in their head to head history, they had never played together over a grass court. Roddick took an early lead in the first set with his strong serve and managed closed the first set under 23 minutes of play. Still, in the second set, Ferrer got his fighting gloves on and began attacking the net. Soon enough, he had the game turning his way with his masterful groundstroke that kept Roddick holding back in the baseline and playing a very defensive match.

Now, if Ferrer manages to defeat del Potro in the fourth round, he will be advancing to the quarterfinals for the first time ever in Wimbledon. Sure enough he’s got an 8 game winning streak behind him as a motivational boost, but it seems that the 2009 US Open winner is going to be a hard bone to chew on. “It’s going to be going to be so difficult. To win him I will have to play very consistent. Is very important my first percentage with my serve. I will have to play very, very good,” Ferrer said of his game against DelPo. Let’s see what happens for now as these two guys take the courts tomorrow.