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Federer, a tranquil victor, triumphs to meet Hewitt
"When he plays like this, it's really tough to beat him," Nalbandian said. "That's why he's No. 1 in the world and he loses just a few matches during the year." Federer was as enthralled by the Agassi-Blake match as the fans who stayed past 1 a.m. to watch it. "I came back from dinner and I thought, 'It's looking good for James,' and suddenly it turned around," Federer said. "What a thriller. I was up until 1:30 myself. Maybe it wasn't the best preparation, but I enjoyed it." Asked about the Agassi-Robby Ginepri match on Saturday, Federer he's happy to see two Americans in the semifinal. "This doesn't happen every day so you better enjoy this moment," he said with a sly smile. Hewitt, ragged at the start, virtually flawless at the end, dodged danger in yet another five-setter to keep up his bid for a second U.S. Open title. The third-seeded Australian, who won the Open in 2001, advanced with a 2-6, 6-1, 3-6, 6-3, 6-1 victory over the unseeded Nieminen, the first player from Finland to reach a Grand Slam quarterfinal. Hewitt made only two unforced errors in the fifth set while putting away 15 winners to end the threat from the left-handed Nieminen. In the first set, Hewitt racked up 16 unforced errors. "I was just struggling a little bit with my movement," Hewitt said. "Just felt a step slower, a bit sluggish out there." Hewitt seemed flat much of the match, never even trying
to rally himself with his usual cries of "Come on!" after a winner in the first
four sets. Instead Nieminen generated noise from the crowd, inspiring chants of
"Let's go, Jarkko!" from fans pulling for an upset by the underdog.
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