Indian Wells 2004: Roger Federer sinks Tim Henman for first desert crown
Roger Federer had won the first Masters 1000 title 17 years ago in Hamburg, cracking the top-10 on the following day and remaining on the course towards the very top of men's tennis. In 2003, the Swiss claimed seven ATP titles including Wimbledon and the Masters Cup, becoming world no. 1 for the first time after conquering the Australian Open at the beginning of the next season. For the next four and a half years, Roger was the leader of the pack and achieved numerous records and milestones that will hardly be reached, establishing himself as one of the greatest players of all time and the dominant figure on the hard courts all over the world.
2004 was the first season when Federer had the upper hand over the rest of the field from start to finish, winning 74 out of 80 matches and claiming 11 titles to forge a massive gap over the closest rivals. After that Australian Open title, Federer scored two Davis Cup wins over the Romanians and his first defeat of the year came in the quarter-final in Rotterdam to Tim Henman, going all the way in Dubai and having a chase to serve revenge against Tim Henman at Indian Wells final. Roger's early Indian Wells campaign was not that successful, winning three out of six matches between 2001-03 and changing all that in 2004 when he claimed the first Masters 1000 title in the desert and the second overall.
Skipping the opening round as the top seed, Federer took down Andrei Pavel 6-1, 6-1 in 64 minutes for the perfect start, losing just 13 points on serve and breaking the Romanian five times to march into the third round where he faced a more dangerous rival in Fernando Gonzalez. The Chilean couldn't match Roger's numbers as well, beaten 6-3, 6-2 in 63 minutes after creating only one break points and three breaks of serve that Roger scored to control the scoreboard all the time and move into the last 16. There, the world no. 19 Mardy Fish fought well in the opening set before Federer forged a 6-4, 6-1 triumph in 71 minutes, again facing just one break point and stealing Fish's serve on three occasions to race into the last eight where he was the clear favorite against Juan Ignacio Chela.
It was another quick day at the office for the Swiss, notching a 6-2, 6-1 triumph in 63 minutes to book the place in the last four, losing serve for the first time during the event and erasing that deficit with a stellar performance on the return to make another big step towards the title. Saving six out of seven break points in the opening four encounters and spending just over four hours on the court overall, Federer was in great form ahead of the semi-final clash with Andre Agassi and he had to work much harder to stay on the title course, ousting the American veteran 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 in an hour and 53 minutes.
Both players had to defend six break points and we saw one break of serve in each set, pushing each other to the limits and staying in touch in the decider until the closing stages. The eighth game could have been the pivotal one, with Andre creating a couple of break points at 4-3 for a huge lead. Roger stayed calm, though, erasing both with forehand winners and taking four points in a row in the following game to break Agassi and get a chance to serve for the place in the final. Two aces sealed the deal for the Swiss and pushed him into the title match where he met Tim Henman on March 21, seeking the first crown in the desert.
Mighty relieved after that tight win over Agassi, Roger proved to be too strong for the Briton, beating him 6-3, 6-3 in 67 minutes for the second Masters 1000 trophy and the second big title in 2004, extending the gap over the players behind him and building the confidence for the rest of the year where he was equally dominant. This was their eighth meeting on the Tour and only the second win for the Swiss who struggled to keep the pace with the more experienced rival on the fastest surfaces in their first clashes, delivering his best tennis in this one to control the scoreboard all the time.
Roger lost just nine points on serve in total, facing no break points and mounting the pressure on the other side of the net to create six break chances and convert three that propelled him over the finish line. Federer hit more winners and fewer number of unforced errors, destroying Henman in the mid-range exchanges to win the first out of three consecutive titles in the desert. A forehand winner gave Roger two break points in the fourth game and converted the second after a forced volley error from Tim to create a 3-1 gap, cementing the break with a service winner in the following game and clinching the opener with a hold at love at 5-3 in 29 minutes.
Henman hit a double fault to give serve away in the third game of the second set and Roger moved 3-1 up with a service winner, wrapping up the triumph when Tim netted a backhand in the ninth game to lift the crown and start the reign in the desert that would last for three years.
from Tennis World USA https://ift.tt/2FpACOT
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