Roddick Vs. Federer In Thailand Open Final

BANGKOK, Thailand (AP) — Roger Federer and Andy Roddick pulled out three-set victories Saturday to set up a No. 1 vs. No. 2 final at the Thailand Open.

Top-ranked Federer got past Thai star Paradorn Srichaphan 7-5, 2-6, 6-3 in the first semifinal, while Roddick outlasted Marat Safin 7-6 (1), 6-7 (0), 7-6 (2) in a matchup between past U.S. Open champions.

There were zero breaks of serve in the Roddick-Safin semifinal, and each player only faced a single break point. Both pounded 18 aces and put in nearly 60 percent of their first serves.

“I tried to be aggressive, but he was more aggressive than me in the first set,”" Roddick said. “So I just went for my shots and got lucky in my second serves. I tried to serve well, because he played better from the baseline.”"

Now the second-ranked American must try to stop Federer, who owns a 7-1 head-to-head edge, including wins in this year’s finals at Wimbledon and the Toronto Masters.

“I hope to win,”" Roddick said. “It”ll be fun.”"

If Federer beats Roddick again Sunday, he”ll be the first man in nearly 20 years to win 12 consecutive tournament finals. The last was John McEnroe in 1984-85; Bjorn Borg did it in 1979-80.

Federer’s streak began with a title on clay at Vienna in October 2003.

Now he’s close to his 10th championship of 2004, including the U.S. Open, Wimbledon and Australian Open — the first time in 16 years that a man won three Grand Slam tournaments in a season.

But Federer nearly didn’t make it out of the semifinals, needing some big serving to pull out the first set, then a key service break in the third.

“Paradorn was tough and played really well. He won long rallies and made me work hard. The third set was a gamble but I was lucky to get a break,”" Federer said.

“I felt sorry for Paradorn. I understand how much this tournament meant to him.”"