Roger Federer put a poor start behind him to beat Carlos Moya 4-6 6-4 6-2 and reach the final of the Hamburg Masters on Saturday.
HAMBURG: Roger Federer showed signs that he may be emerging from his slump with a patchy but fighting display against Carlos Moya which carried him to only his second final appearance in two and a half months.
The world number one from Switzerland beat the former world number one from Spain 4-6, 6-4, 6-2 in the semi-final of the Masters Series, after almost going a break of serve down in both the second and third sets.
Perhaps Federer was assisted by pleasant memories because Moya was the first top ten player he ever beat - eight years ago at the age of 17.
He may also have been strengthened mentally - in what is his worst run since he became number one more than three years ago - by his survival in two earlier three-set tussles, against Juan Monaco and David Ferrer.
Whatever the reason, Federer emerged from error-prone phases with great shots when he needed them, especially at 30-40 in the third game of the second set, when a great backhand counter-hit got him out of trouble and helped him back to deuce.
Then again in the third game of the final set, Federer found himself at 15-40 down, and came up first with a heavy topspin forehand - the shot least likely to let him down - and then a potent net attack.
Federer often gambled to get to the net, and sometimes appeared to pursue risky strategies, perhaps with half an eye to preparation and practice for the French Open in eight days time.
These were cool and heavy conditions in which the slightest mistiming of the ball could lead to a mistake, and Federer's unforced error statistics were high, as they had been all week.
But Moya played with great intelligence, considerable resilience and a threatening forehand, and, after disposing of three seeds, Blake, Berdych and Djokovic, clearly thought he could win.
"I was a bit disappointed with the result because I though this was a day when I could have beaten Roger," Moya said.
"I felt there was a good chance but it didn't happen. He played his best at the right moments and I didn't.
"I played very deep with my backhand and so I was pleased with the way I played. Maybe things could have been different if I had broken in the third game of the second set. But when I look back next week I will realized that I have had a great tournament."
The last four games however saw Federer accelerate and produce the kind of form he will need if he is to have a chance of relieving Rafael Nadal of his French Open title.
He hit two hurtling aces in the penultimate game and finished the match with a wonderful forehand pass taken deceptively from the backhand side. Federer then held his arms aloft and threw them down again violently, as though the victory had been a relief rather than a triumph.
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