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SPORTS ZONE 1: Federer Wins Australian Open

Roger Federer of Switzerland showed why he is the number one player in men’s tennis by winning the sports first major tournament of the year, the Australian Open.

This past Sunday, February 1, 2004, Federer defeated Marat Safin in the Aussie final in just 2 hours and 15 minutes. Federer won the first set (7-6) and then cruised from there, winning the final two sets of the match (6-4) and (6-2) respectively.

There are four Grand Slam tournaments in tennis: the Australian Open, the French Open, Wimbledon, and the U.S. Open. Federer, who is only 22 years of age, holds two of those titles since he defeated Mark Philippoussis at Wimbledon last year.

Federer ran Safin all over the court Sunday, hitting 40 winners while only committing 28 unforced errors. Those numbers are far superior to Safin’s 19 winners and 41 unforced errors. Much of this can be attributed to Safin tying a record for sets played in a Grand Slam tournament with 30 sets played. He was extremely tired and looked as if at any minute he might collapse.

Both players are taking the next week off and will focus their attentions on the rest of the season. The French Open is the next Grand Slam tournament, and it takes place in Paris from May 26-June 6.

--Written by Cris Sigovitch

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