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points with South Africa in the ICC Womens Championshi
LONDON -- Theres a reason Roger Federer has won seven Wimbledon titles and, after a rousing and monumental comeback, finds himself in position to win an unprecedented eighth.Federer has the fluent, fluid game, the cast-iron temperament and still, at the age of nearly 35, the capacity for surprise.Down two sets to No. 9 seed Marin Cilic, Federer looked cooked in their Wednesday quarterfinal. He had to save three straight break points at a critical juncture of the third set and three do-or-die match points in the fourth.And in the end, the No. 3-seeded Federer prevailed 6-7 (4), 4-6, 6-3, 7-6 (9), 6-3 in one of the great victories of his career -- which is saying something.I was in so much trouble in the third, and again in the fourth, a still-breathless Federer said in his off-the-court BBC interview. It was great fun. Obviously, for me, the dream continues.I played great at the end. Very, very pleased.It was appropriate that this 3-hour, 18-minute epic was Federers 307th Grand Slam singles match win, breaking a tie with Martina Navratilova for the all-time record.Seven-time Grand Slam champion John McEnroe, who called the match for ESPN, was out of breath afterward, too.That was amazing, McEnroe said. He had no business winning that match. Cilic was on the brink of victory.That goes down as one of the best [matches] Ive seen. This is the greatest of the great, to hang around long enough to come back from that position.It was the 10th career comeback for Federer after trailing two sets to love and only the third time he has been forced to save match points in a major.Cilic, a streaky Croatian, is now a dubious 1-21 in matches against players ranked among the top three.That one win, however, was against Federer. After going 0-for-5 in his career against Federer, Cilic stunned the Swiss champion with a virtually flawless, straight-sets performance in the semifinals of the 2014 US Open. It was the springboard to his only Grand Slam title.On Wednesday, in another major meeting, it nearly happened again in the civilized space of Centre Court. Actor Stanley Tucci and soccer star David Beckham, along with other pro-Federer patrons, probably couldnt believe what they were seeing in the early going.Federer has always been a player with a marvelous feel for finesse. But there have been occasions when power players -- most notably, Rafael Nadal, Juan Martin del Potro and Cilic -- have overwhelmed him near or at the end of Grand Slam events.For two sets, anyway, thats how it went.But after Federer wriggled out with the third set and lived dangerously when he served at 4-5 and 5-6, facing match points in the fourth, the two players went to a tiebreaker.It was brilliant stuff, with Federer saving another match point and Cilic saving four set points before succumbing after two errant forehands.Afterward, Federer called the tiebreaker crazy.The fifth set? It came down to an anticlimactic break of Cilics serve in the eighth game on a wide forehand.Federer actually hit more aces than Cilic (27 to 23) and saved seven of eight break points. In a match of highest quality, Cilic saved seven of nine break points.With a single flourish, Federer equaled Jimmy Connors record of 11 Wimbledon semifinals and his total of 84 match wins.Federer, for the record, is the oldest man to reach the semis here since Ken Rosewall (39) did it 42 years ago.Thus, the 17-time Grand Slam champion took advantage of an extremely Federer-friendly draw on his favorite court at his favorite venue.Federers last Grand Slam title came here four years ago. Its astonishing to think that he has a decent look at an 18th major singles title if he can beat No. 6 seed Milos Raonic, a four-set winner over Sam Querrey, in Fridays semifinals.On two occasions -- the 2009 French Open and Wimbledon in 2012 -- Federer has gone on to win a Grand Slam after trailing 0-2 in a match. Could this be the third?When Federer missed this years French Open, it ended his record streak of 65 consecutive Grand Slam appearances. Knee surgery and back issues forced him to bypass Paris with the idea of resting and preparing for the grass-court season.Federer played reasonably well in Germany, at Stuttgart and Halle, and came to Wimbledon in a decent frame of mind. Still, he didnt know what kind of shape his body was in. Gradually, he worked his way into the tournament -- and now hes two wins from what would be a massively popular (and unexpected) victory.The last three sets were really good, Federer said. Its really encouraging to me that Im improving as the matches go on. My legs were there, my back was there; mentally this is going to give me a hell of a boost.Im ecstatic that I was able to come through somehow. Incredible match. Cheap Air Max 97 China Discount . Any real chance at payback wont come until the playoff. Still, Pittsburgh knows its taut 3-2 win over the Bruins on Wednesday night is a pretty good place to start laying the groundwork. "They are a very good defensive team," Penguins forward Brandon Sutter said. Clearance Air Max Online . -- Arizona knocked off some quality opponents, rolled over a few overmatched ones and grinded out victories even when things didnt go so well. http://www.cheapairmaxchinadiscount.com/ . While hell be dialed in to that tournament on a course he loves, you can forgive him if his eyes glance down the calendar just a bit, towards April. Cheap Vapormax China Discount .Y. -- Sabres defenceman Tyler Myers had no intention of changing his hard-hitting style before taking part in a disciplinary hearing for his illegal check to New Jersey forward Dainius Zubrus head. Discount Air Max Shoes . The native of Mont-Tremblant, Que., captured a World Cup downhill event Saturday, his second this year and fifth career victory on the circuit.Heather Knight and Georgia Elwiss shared a 97-run, fourth-wicket stand to propel England to a five-wicket victory over South Africa Women and a 2-1 series win, in Johannesburg. Knight added an unbeaten 67 - her second fifty in two games - to figures of 2-36 as the tourists chased down a target of 197 in just 43.5 overs, Elwiss contributing 61 off 67 balls with six fours and one maximum.Anya Shrubsole (3-35) had earlier helped the tourists - beaten at Centurion on Friday after winning a rain-affected opener in Benoni a week ago - reduce South Africa to 85-6, before Lizelle Lee (74) carried out a repair job by powering back-to-back half-centuries.Trish Chetty (31) and skipper Mignon du Preez (26) steadied South Africa with a second-wicket stand of 57 after Laura Wolvaardt (0) was caught behind off Shrubsoles fourth ball. England Women pose with the trophy after their 2-1 success Du Preez was bowled by the recalled Elwiss from the penultimate delivery of the 17th over, initiating a collapse of 5-27 that saw Marizanne Kapp and Dane van Niekerk depart for ducks.Lees knock rescued the innings, the 23-year-old backing up her score of 69 in the second ODI by hitting 11 fours, as well as a six off Knight (2-36), and adding 80 with Sune Luus (20).England lost three wickets within the first 10 overs of their reply, Lauren Winfield (11) pouched by wicketkeeper Chetty before Amy Jones (16) and Sarah Taylor (two) were caught off Chloe Tryon (2-28).ddddddddddddKnight and Charlotte Edwards (29) dug in during a partnership of 53 - the pairs second fifty stand in as many games - before the captain nicked off chasing a wide delivery in the 23rd over. But by the time South Africa achieved their next breakthrough the game was all but up - Knight and Elwiss combining in an entertaining partnership to earn England Women two more ICC World Championship points.The 2-1 series win means that England are now tied on 13 points with South Africa in the ICC Womens Championship table, behind leaders Australia (20 points), the West Indies (16 points) and New Zealand (14 points).Edwards, said: The ICC Womens Championship brings context and consequence to every ODI series that we now play, which is great for the standard and development of womens international cricket. We are obviously disappointed not to have secured the full six points available for this series, but to come away with four points against a strong South African side away from home is still a pleasing result for us.The last three matches have ebbed and flowed for us performance-wise. We have shown glimpses of what we are capable of with both bat and ball, but to be competitive with the best teams in the world we still need to be more consistent. We are starting to show signs of the positive, proactive and fearless cricket that we want to play, and I hope we can take this into the T20I series starting in Paarl on Thursday, and then the ICC Womens World Twenty20 in India next month.Watch England Women take on South Africa Women in T20 action from 11.25am this Friday on Sky Sports 2. ' ' '