New York: Five-times champion Roger Federer weathered a mighty Swedish storm before beating 12th seed Robin Soderling 6-0, 6-3, 6-7, 7-6 to reach the semi-finals of the US Open on Wednesday.
Gusting winds and the magic of Federer threw Soderling off course in a first set that flashed by in just 25 minutes on an unseasonably cool night at Flushing Meadows.
Yet, just when it seemed that Federer would blow away Soderling to roll into his 22nd consecutive Grand Slam semi-final, the Swede perked up and set pulses racing for over an hour as he inched towards an unlikely upset.
"It feels great. It was so close towards the end. It's just a great relief to come through because Robin started playing better and better as the match went on," said Federer, who will take on fourth seed Novak Djokovic for a place in Sunday's showpiece.
"I knew he was going to be tough. The beginning was a bit too easy. All of a sudden he fought his way into the match and showed what a great player he is. I had a really good start. I thought it was cold so I think I felt at home being from Switzerland. Then it got even cooler and him being from Sweden I think that played in his favour," joked the top seed.
"I thought it was a great match towards the end."
His victim added: "I never played anyone who played that well in windy conditions... but it's tough to play worse than I did in the first two sets, so it could only get better."
Soderling entered the match with a 0-11 record against the all-conquering Swiss and looked to be heading towards another mauling as he did not register on the scoreboard until holding for 1-1 in the second set.
But that only turned into a brief respite as he was powerless to stop Federer from breezing through it in double quick time, sparking a mass exodus from Arthur Ashe Stadium.
Caught cold
But if the thousands of fans who streamed out early had stuck around for only a few more minutes, they would have seen the tide turning as Soderling suddenly warmed up to the task.
He crafted two break points in the sixth game but could only shake his head in disbelief as Federer fired down two thunderbolt deliveries to get out himself out of a corner.
The 15-times Grand Slam champion looked to be heading for another straight-sets win when he steamed ahead 4-0 in the tiebreak but to the astonishment of the crowd, he was overtaken.
The Swedish 12th seed, who was runner-up to Federer in the French Open final, hit back with some crafty forehands to strike back and snatch it 8-6.
As the clock crept towards the midnight hour, Federer looked like a man who was being forced to work over-time against his wishes.
But just when it seemed that the night might stretch on indefinitely, with the Swede holding set point at 6-5 in the fourth set tiebreak, Federer yelled "Come On" as Soderling smacked a service return wide.
Two points later a roar rang out all over Flushing Meadows as a Soderling forehand error handed Federer victory at 12.09 am local time, allowing him to reach his 22nd consecutive Grand Slam semi-final.
"It's probably one of the greatest records for me in my personal career. I'm just happy it keeps on going," said the 28-year-old, who would match Bill Tilden's championship run in the 1920s with a sixth successive title here.
"I'm healthy, I guess that's most important because that's what allows me to play well in majors, for a shot again to defend my title."
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