DEEP-SIX

On Wednesday, Roger Federer  fired a warning shot at his potential challengers in the Australian Open final four after a ruthless deconstruction of sixth seed Nikolay Davydenko in their quarter-final on Wednesday.

Despite a poor start that saw Federer lose the first set and face a double break in the second, the world No. 1 surged back into the match and finished off the Russian 2-6 6-3 6-0 7-5 in two hours and 36 minutes at Rod Laver Arena.

Davydenko stands near the baseline and as soon as Federer began to hit with greater depth, Davydenko lost some power, placement, and spin - all as a result of hitting the ball slightly late.