Yaaaaawwwwwwnnnnnn! Still feeling very sleepy after staying up watching 2010 Australian Open Finals. From 12.30AM-4AM PST. Federer beat Murray in a so-so match, in straight sets, winning his 16th Grand Slam.

The match started with Murray looking totally sleepy, as if he just woke up and walked to the court, and tense. In fact, I think this demeanor carried over for most of the 1st two sets (though his immediate break-back in the 3rd game of the 1st set was quite intense. It was more like a blip). The second set was quite close actually, with Murray saving 6 break points from going down two breaks and keeping it close till the end of that set. The 3rd set was very very good and made the whole match worth it, as a spectacle. Especially, the Tie-Break was surreal. From Murray’s standpoint, it was a pity that he could not close out the 3rd set, after serving for it at 5-3 and having several set points in the Tie-Break.

There were a bit too many errors, from both players, and a bit too many loose shots, from both players, for it to be a high quality match (in my opinion). Of course, it doesnt help that spectators are going to compare the match with the 2009 Finals, which was great.

Also, as a fan, I am getting a bit put-off by Federer’s overall attitude towards opponents like Murray. I have a theory for this. If you notice the player’s box, you can see Murray’s Mother, Coach and others being quite vocal in their support for Murray, with some pretty aggressive gestures. Could it be that Federer is put off by that? A couple of years back, during the Rome Masters, I recall Federer shouting to Djokovic’s parents to “Shut Up!” after a couple of very noisy support sequences. And as we know, there is no love lost between Djokovic and Federer. Only after the Djoker won 2008 Australian Open (beating Federer on the way), has Federer started showing some semblance of respect to Djokovic.

My point it, as time passes, Federer is becoming a bit “high maintenance” 🙂 It would be nice if he could be very political and give just dues where it is due. It would not have hurt him to say a few extended words of encouragement to Murray (who has just taken a heartbreaking loss) at the net. All he did was a curt handshake and a couple of nods. I really felt sorry for Murray. Just look at his face while he was shaking Federers hand.

Murray has too much game to not win Grand Slams. He is definitely not like the other “British Hopes” we have had in the recent past. He just needs to pull it together in the huge matches, like this one.