Flawless Roger Federer keeps bit up sleeve with quick demolition of Tsonga

ANY notion Andy Murray may have had that he would step on to court the fresher man than his opponent in the Australian Open final were blown away yesterday, as a zestful Roger Federer emerged from his semi-final with a spring in his step.

The Swiss world No1 simply swept Jo-Wilfried Tsonga aside, sending out an ominous warning to Murray that there are few, if any chinks, in his armour at this tournament. Federer took just an hour and 28 minutes to overwhelm the dejected Frenchman 6-2, 6-3, 6-2, and will return to the Rod Laver Arena tomorrow not only confident, but fit and rested.

Murray, who has been in supreme form himself, had spoken on Thursday of the uplifting prospect of having an extra day to prepare for the final, having completed his semi-final victory over Marin Cilic 24 hours before Federer was due on court.

The Scot was on the practice court for a gentle hit yesterday, and will do the same again today, but the amount of time and energy Federer expended on court yesterday was more or less akin to the duration Murray spent going through his gentle training routine.

Tsonga reached the final at Melbourne Park two years ago but he was left shell-shocked as Federer showed he will make Murray's quest for a maiden Grand Slam title as difficult as possible.

"I feel good about my game but I didn't expect something even close to this kind of scoreline, so obviously it feels great," Federer said. "The crowd were rather on the quiet side towards the end because also they were a bit surprised I think how fast it went. I felt like this could be a good match for me. I'm hitting the ball well.

"Tonight was definitely one of the nights where I felt like I had that extra split second more time to think where I was going to play, what I was going to do with the ball. So you always feel like you almost have a second option. You have to be careful you don't overdo it and make sure you still go with the right plays."

Federer offered his rival little respite as he continually peppered the lines with winners while he dominated on serve, losing only 15 points in 13 games on his delivery.

The 28-year-old admitted he had made sure he kept his level until the end after being on the losing end of a Tsonga comeback last time they met in Canada last year.

Federer had been 5-1 ahead in the deciding set of that match only to lose in a tie-break. "For me it was very challenging bringing it over the finish line," he said. "Last time I played him, probably most of the entire stadium didn't know, I was up 6-1, 5-1 and ended up losing. That wasn't a boring match for me, that ended up being a horrible match. I didn't want the same thing happening.

"So for me it was trying to put the hammer down and finish him off. I was able to. Here I am sitting now very relaxed and excited about the finals, not still battling it out there. It was a great match.