Federer power overwhelms Arazi's artistry

Win or lose in the semi-finals of the Dubai Open today, Roger Federer has redeemed his reputation after being accused of "tanking" in the second round of last year's tournament.

Having worked his way through humidity in the two previous rounds, the Swiss top seed coped well with a cold, capricious wind and an equally tricky opponent in the quarter-finals last night, defeating Hicham Arazi, of Morocco, 7-5, 6-3. He now plays Ivan Ljubicic, of Croatia, who beat Germany's Rainer Schüttler, 6-3, 6-4. (Schüttler was Federer's second-round opponent last year.)

The conditions probably handicapped Arazi more than Federer. The Moroccan has a habit of disappearing up his own artistry, but on this occasion his fine touch was gradually blown off course after an encouraging start.

Arazi broke for 2-1 in the opening set, but Federer's steadier, stronger game enabled him to level at 4-4, save two break points at 5-5, and launch a set-winning attack in the 12th game.

Federer broke for 2-0 in the second set, saved three break points on the way to 4-1, and his night's work seemed as good as done when he broke for 5-1. Nerves briefly played a part after Federer created his first two match points at 40-15. He netted a forehand on the first and hit a backhand long on the second. Two more Federer shots landed over the baseline, and a reprieved Arazi was serving at 2-5. He managed to hold, but Federer then served out to love, delivering an unreturnable serve on his third match point.

"Hicham's game can really get to your head, like it did to me at the French Open last year," Federer said. "He was playing really well in the beginning tonight, and it took me time to get my groove. I was too passive. The wind was gusting from all directions, and I had to swing through the ball, otherwise it would come off the frame all the time."

The inaugural Dubai Open in 1993 was won by a Czech, Karel Novacek, and Jiri Novak has tried hard to add his name to the trophy. The 27-year-old from Zlin is due to contest his third semi-final today, having reached the same stage last year and also in 1997. So far, Novak has had to settle for winning the doubles here with his compatriot David Rikl in 2000.

Novak, the third seed, defeated the sixth-seeded Dutchman, Sjeng Schalken, in the quarter-finals in the heat of the afternoon, 6-4, 6-4. He will be challenged for a place in the final by Tommy Robredo, of Spain, who won a close contest against his compatriot, Feliciano Lopez, 6-7, 6-3, 6-4.

If there is more confidence in Novak's step these days, it is probably because he finished last season ranked in the world's top 10, emulating five of his Czech predecessors, Petr Korda, Novacek, Miloslav Mecir (in the days before Slovakia's independence), Ivan Lendl and Jan Kodes.

Novak, while proud of his ranking, is not taking it for granted. "Everything is new to me, and I have to defend all my points from last year," he said, conscious that his season has not exactly taken flight. He was a first-round loser in his previous two events, in Milan and Marseilles.

"It was hard to judge ball today," Novak said. "A lot of shots came off the frame, and Sjeng was making a lot of mistakes from the baseline. I was lucky I got the break in the first game." Landing 81 per cent of his first serves also contributed to Novak's superiority, and, crucially, he came out on top after three consecutive breaks midway through the second set.