Wimbledon 2008: Roger Federer v Lleyton Hewitt - As It Happened

Xan will be here with all the action from 1pm. Ish.



The preamble He has been serene and he has been unruffled, strolling on to Centre Court in a gold-trimmed cardigan and exiting, an eye-blink later, with the scalp of yet another hapless victim. And yet on this, Wimbledon's second Monday, reigning champ Roger Federer faces what is - at least potentially - an altogether sterner test in the scrappy, rodential form of Lleyton Hewitt - a Wimbledon winner himself in those bygone days of 2002.

These two have played each other 21 times in all - a rivalry stretching back to 1999. Hewitt dominated those first encounters; since then it has been all Federer. He has won the last 11 encounters and now leads 13 matches to eight.

So how will match number 22 pan out? I'm guessing that all depends on the Fed. If he plays well, he'll win - and probably in straight sets. But if he's even slightly off the pace, Hewitt has the game to cause him all manner of headaches.

Federer is the game's richest, most complete player. But Hewitt (with the possible exception of Rafael Nadal) is its most dogged, tenacious competitor. He has exceptional foot-speed and an uncanny ability to wriggle under his opponent's skin. So the Swiss needs to be at his best here. If not, we could be in for long and torrid street brawl.



First set: Federer 1-0 Hewitt Early evidence suggests that the Swiss forgot to take the lead out of his boots. He slides to 0-30 (aided by some canny counter-punching by the Australian) before digging himself out of trouble with a trio of potent first serves. First game to the Fed.



First set: Federer 1-1 Hewitt A solid hold for Hewitt to level matters.

Let's take an early pause for some Fun With Emails. Today's subject is not fashion, or form, or the quirks of individual players. Instead, let's tackle the big issues for once. Like racism.

"I know Wimbledon has a white dress code, but I didn't think it extended to the skin color of just about everyone involved in the tournament," writes Gary Naylor. "Going past the All-England Club on Saturday, the lack of diversity amongst spectators, officials etc was remarkable - especially for South West London, my favorite thriving, vibrant, multicultural quarter of our great Metropolis. Frankly, in 2008, it won't do."



First set: Federer 2-1 Hewitt Federer holds to love, which allows us the time to ponder Gary's point. I think it's a fair argument - but plus-de-change. The championships have never exactly been a multicultural melting-pot. Players aside, it's a hangover from an England that has been and gone. The officials probably had an attack of the vapors the first time the Williams sisters came moseying through the door.



First set: Federer 2-2 Hewitt Anyway, back to the game in hand. The Swiss holds Hewitt to 30-30 but the Aussie wriggles free. He's good at that.



First set: Federer 3-2 Hewitt Federer's forehand tends to be the barometer for how the rest of his game is working. By and large it's holding up well out here, with two stinging winners at the start, followed by a fluffed shot into the tramlines. Two out of three isn't a bad ratio, of course. But will it be enough to win him title number six?



First set: Federer 3-3 Hewitt Not a vintage game for the Swiss. He leathers a ball past the baseline, then dumps a backhand into the net. Hewitt takes it to love with a service winner.



First set: Federer 4-3 Hewitt At 30-30, Federer is looking rattled, frowning at his entourage in the stands. Then he strikes a sweet, clean ace and follows that with a crisp volley into the open court. His nose is just ahead.



First set: Federer 4-4 Hewitt A lovely service game from Hewitt. Uncharacteristically elegant at times - mixing stunning serves with some fine finesse at the net.

A riposte to Gary Naylor from Danny Foster. "I think Gary Naylor has made an error in the email he sent you regarding multiculturalism at Wimbledon. It will take generations before this changes, it is a European sport played by the white middle class which is gradually attracting attention from other areas and cultures, but these changes don't happen over night."



First set: Federer 5-4 Hewitt The champion eases from third gear to fourth with a brilliant game to love. Hewitt will have to serve to stay in this first set.



First set: Federer 5-5 Hewitt ... and the Aussie levels it at 5-5

"Gary Naylor has a point but this need for everybody to be integrated in every walk of life is just too PC and frankly unrealistic," argues Finn Curry. "So Tennis is overly 'White'? Well, I see many barber shops in South West London where I live which I (as a white man) would never dream of going to - should we therefore have a push to integrate barbers?! Different Folks, different strokes as they say - leave it be!"

Some lovely strokes from Hewitt in that game, by the way (oh, facile, changing-the-subject link). He lacerates Federer with a forehand to the corner, knocks off a sharp backhand volley and holds to 30.



First set: Federer 6-5 Hewitt Hewitt is now struggling to make an impression on the champion's serve. Federer wins to love, finishing it off with a hefty serve down the T.



First set: Federer 6-6 Hewitt Hewitt works Federer effectively from side to side, finding telling angles with his forehand. But Federer is up to the task, mixing up the pace and then threading a winner down the line. But at 30-30, the Aussie finds a laser-sharp backhand and then shakes his fist at the crowd. And a tie break it shall be ....



First set: Federer 6-6 (2-2) Hewitt First mini-break goes to the Swiss. Hewitt is trying for too much, pushing his shots too wide or into the net. But he is reprieved when HawkEye shows that a shot to the baseline clipped the outside edge of the line. Federer not impressed.

He is even less impressed when Hewitt wins the next point to claw back the break. "C'mon!" screams the Aussie.



First set: Federer 6-6 (4-4) Hewitt The Swiss edges ahead again as Hewitt shanks a ball well out. Yet again the advantage is short-lived.



First set: Federer 6-6 (6-6) Hewitt Federer surges to set point but bashes the ball well long. Hewitt is sticking with him, if only barely.



First set to Federer 7-6 (9-7) Yet again, the Swiss moves to set point, courtesy of an elementary backhand pass down the line. He clinches it with an ace. The first set was a dogfight and Federer looked just faintly below-par. Hewitt, however, now has a mountain to climb. His great hope was to capitalize on Federer's fragility. For all his tooth-and-claw scrapping, he has allowed the champion to wriggle free.



Second set: Federer leads 7-6 (9-7) 1-0 Alarm bells for Hewitt! He is broken at the top of the second, dumping a backhand passing shot into the net. Small wonder he was deflated after losing the tie break. But that's history. He needs to regroup - and fast.

And oh, the can of worms that Gary has opened with his broadside against the perceived all-white nature of the All England Club. Can't even begin to start tackling the inundation now, but the anti-Gary camp appears (thus far) to winning on a tie break.

"Gary mentioned walking past the All England ground," marvels Rebecca Lee. "I never realized he went out of his house - thought he spent all his time indoors watching the live commentary.



Second set: Federer leads 7-6 (9-7) 2-0 A matter of minutes ago Federer was looking inhibited and ill-at-ease. That seems a long time ago now. He holds quickly to consolidate the break.



Second set: Federer leads 7-6 (9-7) 3-0 It's now official. We are now back to the Federer of 2003, 2004, 2005 etc, etc. He opens his shoulders to brush aside the Hewitt challenge, rocking him with a series of grand, sweeping ground strokes to the corners. Hewitt is running and fighting, but it's nowhere near enough. Double break.



Second set: Federer leads 7-6 (9-7) 4-0 The match is now evoking faint memories of the 2004 US Open final, in which Federer hammered Hewitt 6-0 7-6 6-0. Hewitt has to stop the rot before this one runs away from him in similar fashion. This far he's just not doing it.



Second set: Federer leads 7-6 (9-7) 4-1 Phew. Hewitt is finally on the board, scrapping through with a sharp reflex volley and a raking forehand to the corner to hold his serve.



Second set: Federer leads 7-6 (9-7) 5-1 Wonder of wonders: Hewitt claws his way to a break point. It's a glimmer of a chance, but only a glimmer. With insouciant ease, Federer belts two aces to ease home.



Second set: Federer leads 7-6 (9-7) 5-2 Hewitt's best shot this afternoon has been the use of a sneaky backhand that he sends back behind the Swiss. He hits it again in this game, and yet again catches Federer wrong-footed. That and a stinging serve on the last point are enough to bag him the game.



Federer wins the second set 7-6 (9-7) 6-2 OK, so maybe Federer is blowing hot and cold out here. But when he's hot, he's like an oven on a fast-roast setting. Hewitt scrambles to 15-40 and then the Swiss dials up the temperature, clubbing a forehand winner to reach set point. He seals the deal with ease to move two sets up. The quarter final is now so close he can almost smell it.



Third set: Federer leads 7-6 (9-7) 6-2 0-1 Hewitt nails a simple service game to start the third set. But he's lacking a little in the way of intensity out here. It used to be that he could bully Federer; push him around; knock him out of his comfort zone. But those days are long gone. If anything, the Aussie is showing him too much respect.



Third set: Federer leads 7-6 (9-7) 6-2 1-1 Open mouth, insert foot. It seems that Hewitt is still taking the fight to Federer after all. For the third game in a row, he hustles to break points on the Swiss' serve and comes within a whisker of taking it with a lunging forehand volley that drops just wide. Then, yet again, the champion gets free. These are cruel times for the Australian. So near and yet so far.



Third set: Federer leads 7-6 (9-7) 6-2 2-1 Is Hewitt slowing down? He is carrying a niggling hip injury, remember, and may well have exacerbated it with that doomed, desperate attempt at a volley in the previous game. He's now struggling to move to the wide balls, which looks fatal for his chances. Federer breaks.



Third set: Federer leads 7-6 (9-7) 6-2 3-1 Say what you like about Hewitt (and they do. They do); he's not a man to lie down without a fight. Just when it looked as though he might be fading quickly away, he conjures yet another break point on the Federer serve (for the fourth game in a row). He may be injured, he may be disheartened. But he's still giving his all. David Nalbandian, take note.

But - oh so predictably - Federer saves the first break point, and then the second, and then the third. Eight break points have now come and gone for Hewitt. The Swiss finishes him off with a terrific kicking serve to the ad court. The ball rears up, high, high over the Aussie's head. Try as he might, he can't bring it down.



Third set: Federer leads 7-6 (9-7) 6-2 3-2 Hewitt holds to 15, wrapping it up with a swinging ace.

Hmm - in the meantime the emails have become as rare as a non-white face in the royal box. Gary Naylor's explosive mail appears to have scared the other correspondents away.



Third set: Federer leads 7-6 (9-7) 6-2 4-2 The Swiss magician moves to within two games of victory with a glorious, free-flowing backhand to the corner. Hewitt was nowhere near it. He can just stand there and watch it fly.



Third set: Federer leads 7-6 (9-7) 6-2 4-3 The fates take pity on Lleyton Hewitt, who comes through with a love service game. Against all the odds, I'm starting to feel some sympathy for the man. He looks as though he's just run slap-bang into a brick wall.



Third set: Federer leads 7-6 (9-7) 6-2 5-3 Federer holds serve, as easy as pie.

Is Hewitt a lucky player or a cursed one? On the one hand he was fortunate to peak during that brief period between the end of the Sampras era and the start of the Federer dynasty. On the other, he has had to spend the past five years (in theory his prime as a player) being soundly clobbered in the majors; knowing what it feels like to win one of the big ones while simultaneously realizing that it will- in all likelihood - never happen again. A cruel sport, tennis.



Third set: Federer leads 7-6 (9-7) 6-2 5-4 In what is surely his last stand, the Aussie stirs up faint embers of former glories, holding serve to love and completing the game with a booming ace. Now it's up to Federer to serve it out.



Federer wins 7-6 (9-7) 6-2 6-4 There is no mercy for ones such as Hewitt. Federer duly serves out the match, winning it easily to advance to the last eight, and leaving Hewitt to reflect on a game of might-have-beens.

If anything, the Australian held the whip-hand during a tense opening set. But crucially, he could not force the advantage home. Hewitt won this thing back in 2002. It might as well have been 100-years ago. Since then this place has been owned by Roger Federer.