On Thursday, Roger Federer gained a measure of revenge against Wimbledon nemesis Kevin Anderson, beating the South African 6-0 6-4 at the Miami Open to set up a mouthwatering semi-final against a player barely half his age. Federer will have little time to rest his 37-year-old legs before his clash against 19-year-old Denis Shapovalov, the highly regarded Canadian talent tipped for future Grand Slam success. Twentieth seed Shapovalov won his battle of `Next Gen` hustlers 6-7(5) 6-4 6-2 against American Frances Tiafoe.
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Here it is to be noted that Shapovalov is one of two Canadian teenagers in the semis, with 18-year-old Felix Auger-Aliassime to play defending champion John Isner in the other. Federer has won 100 career titles, 100 more than Shapovalov, and was looking forward to the pair`s first match-up. Federer said "He`s one of the big shotmakers in the game. I love his forehand,". The Swiss raced through the first set against Anderson, the man who beat him in a quarter-final marathon at Wimbledon last year.
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However, Anderson took nine games to get on the board but eventually found his groove and broke back with a series of return winners to level at 3-3 in the second set. Federer struck the decisive blow at 4-4, however, winning a marathon game of 22 points and clinching the break with a fortuitous backhand return down the line. He said of the shot "I hit it late and that`s why it went short,". "That`s not what I wanted to do but maybe what it took. I got a bit lucky there at the end.