Another One Bites the Dust

First it was Rafael Nadal losing to David Ferrer, and now Roger Federer, winner of 16 Grand Slam titles, has been eliminated from the Australian Open by Novak Djokovic in straight sets 7-6, 7-5, 6-4. The Serbian-born Djokovic isn't exactly a slouch, entering the tournament as the 3rd ranked men's player in the world. And now he has beaten Federer 7 times in 20 attempts, including the semifinals of the 2008 Australian Open. To put the significance of these two players being eliminated before the final into perspective, check this out: Between 2004 and now there have been 29 Grand Slam Events (I'm including this one). Nadal and Federer have combined to win 24 of them. The last time a Grand Slam final didn't involve Federer or Nadal was ironically the 2008 Australian Open won by Djokovic. It will be interesting to see if this represents a power shift in the tennis world or if this is just another aberration. Federer is now 29 years old, but Nadal is only 24. And keep in mind, Pete Sampras was 31 when he won his last U.S. Open in 2002, so both players would still appear to be in that window. Andy Murray and David Ferrer play Friday in the other semifinal. Meanwhile on the women's side, Kim Clijsters will face off against Li Na for the Title.