By Mike McIntyre

 

Roger Federer is saying all of the right things ahead of contesting his twenty-third Grand Slam final and his second versus Andy Murray. He appears to be calm, cool and collected enough to even mention in jest how it was been about, “150,000 years” since  a British man has won a major event.

 

In reality it has 'only' been 73 years since Fred Perry won a Slam (U.S. Open) in 1936. Murray has a legitimate shot at attaining the same result and here’s why:

 

Having already lost a major final to Federer, Murray has experienced the first-time jitters and first-time disappointments that came along with it. In that encounter, at the U.S. Open in 2008, Federer swept Murray away easily 6-2, 7-5, 6-2 in straight sets.

 

Murray has grown both physically and emotionally since that drubbing, and has established himself as a bona-fide top-five player on the ATP Tour. He holds a 6-4 advantage in head-to-head matches against the world number one, including six of the past eight meetings.

 

Speaking on Saturday, Murray had the following to say about the differences between his first and second career Grand Slam finals:

 

"Well, I was only 20. I mean, 20 was pretty young when I played my first slam final. It was a year and a half, two years later, I just feel physically more mature, mentally more mature. You know, just a lot more experience in these sort of situations now."

 

Murray also seems to be the hungrier of the two. Federer has been unusually chatty in the days leading up to this final match. He’s joking with the press and talking-up Murray’s lack of Slam success just a little too much. Hopefully he isn’t underestimating the damage Murray can inflict upon him and is merely trying to get inside his opponent’s head a little bit.

 

Federer's lost his last Slam final in part because he was slightly overconfident. He allowed the U.S. Open title to slip through his fingers last summer against first-time Slam finalist Juan Martin Del Potro after being up two sets to one. Perhaps having attained the all-time record of 15 Slams has softened Federer’s killer instinct ever so slightly.

 

His comments off the court after defeating Tsonga reveal that his self-confidence is still clearly in tact.

 

"Uhm, don't know. I mean, look, he's in his second Grand Slam final now. I think the first one's always a bit tougher than the second one. But now that he didn't win the first one, I think doesn't help, you know, for the second one around. Plus he's playing, you know, me, who's won many Grand Slams prior to that, been able to win here three times so I know what it takes and how to do it, which is definitely an advantage. I don't feel like the pressure's really on me having to do it again, because I did it before. I think he really needs it more than I do, you know. So I think the pressure's big on him. But we'll see how he's gonna handle it. It's not going to be easy for him, that's for sure."

 

On court, Federer has been brilliant at times during this edition of the Australian Open and ordinary during others. In the first round against Igor Andreev he came out flat and nearly found himself down two sets to one. Federer then oversaw the precise dismantling of Victor Hanescu, Albert Montanes and hometown-hope Lleyton Hewitt where Federer looked invincible. He followed those matches up with a close four-setter against Russian Nikolay Davydenko who has had his number of late. Just as he did against Andreev, he flirted with disaster early on nearly finding himself down by two sets. Federer self-corrected in the semi-finals by embarrassing Jo-Wilfried Tsonga 6-2, 6-3, 6-2 and his fans will be hoping that the same Federer shows up on Sunday in Melbourne.

 

The outcome of this match is significant. With Roger’s main rival Rafael Nadal sidelined for four weeks with a right knee injury, this is another opportunity to further solidify his status as the best player in the game. A defeat however, would be the second Grand Slam tournament in a row where he has lost to a player not from Mallorca. It could signify his growing vulnerability in a men’s game that suddenly has many potential threats.