Blake stands in Murray's way

British number one Andy Murray will take on American James Blake in the final of the AEGON Championships at Queen's.

Murray, bidding to become the first British winner of the tournament since Bunny Austin in 1938, disposed of Spain's Juan Carlos Ferrero 6-2 6-4 in his centre court semi-final.

Blake made it into the final by default after his opponent Andy Roddick, looking to win a fifth AEGON title, twisted his ankle and was forced to retire with the scores level at 4-4 in the opening set.

Murray, the competition's top seed, has not dropped a set in the entire competition and is now favourite to win his first grass title on home soil.

It has been perfect preparation for the 22-year-old ahead of Wimbledon but the Scot is refusing to get carried away with his success as SW19 looms ever closer.

"It's so easy based on a few matches to get ahead of yourself," said Murray.

"That's a problem I think that a lot of people have in this country - expecting huge things and thinking that it's just going to happen.

"I need to go out there and make it happen. Any Grand Slams are going to be incredibly tough.

"There's no part of me that's thinking about winning the Wimbledon title. I'm sure if I get close to doing it, it might cross my mind, but a very, very long way away from doing that just now.

"It's all a hype thing and if you get caught up in it, then it becomes an issue.

"I'm thinking about the match tomorrow, I'm not thinking about the Wimbledon final. When I get to Wimbledon I won't be thinking about the second week, I'll be thinking about the first match.

"The build-up is tough because you get asked so many questions that it would be easy to start thinking ahead and letting the pressure and expectations get to you.

"But if you just stay focused on what your job is, once the tournament starts, that's not a problem for me, because I expect a lot of myself. I put pressure on myself to play well, but only on each match, not to win the tournament just yet."

Blake was disappointed to reach the final at injured Roddick's expense but believes he can produce the kind of game to push Murray all the way in the final.

"It was absolutely not the way I wanted to win," admitted Blake. "Especially against such a good friend and someone who, in my opinion, is good enough to win Wimbledon.

"If he had tried to keep going and possibly gone over on it again it would really have endangered his chance of playing at Wimbledon.

"I think he weighed that up in the couple of games in which he kept trying to play and realised he had to make the decision for the long term.

"Anyone that's in a final has the ability to play great tennis, and I'd like to think I do.

"If I'm playing well and putting pressure on him, you know, you take your chances, and a lot of times if you're playing well it's going to come down to a point or two here and there.

"You just take advantage of a break point here, a point in a tiebreaker there or something and go after your shots, play aggressive and see what happens."

Injured Roddick remains confident he will be fit for Wimbledon and will undergo more scans on his ankle tomorrow.

"I'm going to do everything I can to play at Wimbledon," said Roddick.

"We're scheduled to get it looked at again tomorrow and do some scans on it and see where we're at, but initial tests showed the stability and strength was okay.

"We're looking at days, not weeks. My trainer and doctors don't think anything is torn.

"I was just going back after I hit the shot, and there's a difference in height between where the grass court ends and where the concrete goes, and I just unfortunately stepped at a bad angle.

"It kind of just twisted a little bit. Running straight ahead was all right but side to side was suspect.

"Obviously with the bigger picture in mind, I could only make it worse out there. I wasn't going to help my prospects at Wimbledon at all by going through the motions out there and moving at, you know, 20 or 30% of what I can."

Roddick's a changed man

Andy Roddick Andy Roddick is playing at Wimbledon for the ninth time — but for the first time as a married man and the first time under the coaching of Larry Stefanki. No one would argue that he is a changed man. Andy Roddick has twice been a runner-up at Wimbledon but last year went out in the second round, his earliest exit point. "I was going into Wimbledon a little under-prepared," he admits. "I hadn't really played a whole lot and to be honest I haven't played my best tennis there the last couple of years. But this year I’m really excited , I’m playing a little bit better and moving a little bit better." At 26 Roddick has clearly not given up the chase for a second Grand Slam title — he won the US Open in 2003 — or to build his challenge again at Wimbledon where he was runner-up to Roger Federer in 2004 and again the following year. Larry Stefanki is a Californian who ranked as high as 35th in the world when he was on the tour for nine years. Since then his skills as a motivator and tactician have taken him into a coaching role with, among others, John McEnroe, Yevgeny Kafelnikov, Tim Henman and now Roddick. "When I hired him I just said that I'm not looking to run the show, that's your job, I'm here to follow orders," Roddick says, "and he said 'ok, well, lose 15 pounds'. So the process started , I don't think it was anything magic or revolutionary, it was just eating right, and the biggest thing was having six weeks of an off season to be really disciplined about it. "It gives you a little bit of underlying confidence knowing that you have put in the work. I can play different ways now, scramble a little bit better, or I can play aggressive and everything just feels a little bit quicker." Results prove Roddick was on target. He was a semi-finalist in the Australian Open, where he would always hope to do well, and the last 16 at the French Open, where he has been less successful. Results from other tournaments also reflected progress. These results came despite the distraction of his marriage this year to model Brooklyn Decker. "The wedding took one day, but the whole time I was training. I trained the day afterwards. I feel physically I'm extremely well prepared," Roddick says. Stefanki worked and watched, amending the programme as necessary. He says: "I think he's as capable as anyone to win on the grass and I’m talking Wimbledon. If he can serve with the variety that he's serving right now, I'm not just talking hitting fast balls all day long, putting himself in a position to move into the courts more, play on the baseline on the return of serve, attack a lot more, I think the window of opportunity is very big for him at Wimbledon. "He lost second round at Wimbledon last year and that was horrible for him. He knows that window is there, he knows he's playing well and it's exciting for him and exciting for me to see if he maintains this aggressiveness and this approach. "When we got together I tried to look on what he did not do well and what his deficiencies were compared to the other five guys ahead of him. I felt like his movement and footwork were a little bit on the lesser side than the guys ahead of him so I said 'Listen, if you want to get into that realm you're going to have to lose weight, become faster on your feet, do a lot of running, do a lot of two-on-ones, hit-move, hit-move, not just hit, watch and then try to run after the ball and get a breather'. "I am a big believer that the game at this level is played from the waist down. It's all about footwork, balance, getting yourself in the right position and then basically cock the racket back and go."

Sharap-ova and out at Edgbaston

Maria Sharapova crashed out of the AEGON Classic with the former Wimbledon champion suffering a straight-sets defeat to Na Li.

Sharapova had been bidding for a third grass-court title in Birmingham after victories in 2004 and 2005, but was beaten 6-4 6-4 by her Chinese opponent, the fourth seed.

The Russian, who had been unseeded after plunging down the rankings due to a lengthy injury lay-off, conceded six breaks of serve during a match which lasted an hour and 29 minutes.

Li, the highest-ranked player left in the competition, will face Slovakia's Magdalena Rybarikova in the final after she came from a set down to defeat Sania Mirza of India.

Rybarikova, the 13th seed, was comfortably beaten in the first set but hit back superbly, taking the second to love and running her streak to eight games in a row by building a 2-0 lead in the third.

Mirza brought things back level, but Rybarikova then won 12 of the last 15 points of the match to complete a 3-6 6-0 6-3 victory and reach her first WTA Tour final

A delighted Li said: "My return of serve was so good today. I broke her many times so it did not feel like a grass court match.

"I lost to her so many times before, so I thought if I lose again then I should not worry. That made me very relaxed today."

Sharapova could at least be consoled by her best result since her return from a nine-month injury break after shoulder surgery.

"I wasn't playing with the same intensity today as I did in my previous matches," she said. "Against an opponent like her, the intensity has to be there the whole match. I just wasn't able to come through today."

Djokovic into Gerry Weber final

Novak Djokovic claimed his place in the Gerry Weber Open final in Halle with a straight-sets win over Olivier Rochus.

The second-seeded Serbian edged a tight first set before securing a decisive break in the second to seal a 7-6 (9/7) 6-4 victory over the Belgian qualifier in just under two hours.

Djokovic will now come up against world number 41 Tommy Haas in tomorrow's final.

The wild card fought back from a set down to see off German compatriot Philipp Kohlschreiber 2-6 7-6 (7/5) 7-6 (7/3).

Haas will be aiming to win his 12th ATP Tour singles title while Djokovic, who has beaten the German in two previous meetings, is competing for his 14th.

Murray secures final spot

Andy Murray reached the final of AEGON Championships after a one-sided victory over Spain's Juan Carlos Ferrero at Queen's.

It took Murray, bidding to become the first British winner of the tournament since Bunny Austin's triumph in 1938, just 71 minutes to see off Ferrero 6-2 6-4.

The 22-year-old became the first British finalist in the tournament since Tim Henman seven years ago and faces either Andy Roddick or James Blake in the final on Sunday.

"I'm very happy with the way I played," Murray told BBC Sport. "All round it's been a good week so far and hopefully I can continue it tomorrow."

The Scot is yet to drop a set in the tournament but he still manages to rap his knuckles hard on his racket when he makes the odd mistake on court.

The TV cameras spotted blood on his shorts but Murray declared: "It looks a lot worse than it actually is - it doesn't hurt at all. I'll be fine tomorrow."'

The Scot was quickly into his stride against Ferrero and broke the Spaniard's serve in the opening game of the first set.

It was the perfect start for Murray, who quickly increased the lead by holding his serve comfortably in the second game.

Ferrero, ranked 90th in the world, struggled to cope with Murray's returns but just managed to hold serve when the tournament top seed found the net.

But Murray made it 3-1 with a superb drop shot and the Scot broke Ferrero's serve again in the fifth game.

It was a one-sided semi-final with Murray's class all too evident. The Briton easily held his serve once more to make it 5-1 in just 21 minutes of play on the centre court.

Ferrero managed to reduce the arrears to 5-2 with some fine cross-court volleys but it was only a temporary respite.

Although Murray double-faulted for the first time in the game, he soon made it 15-all and an over-hit return gave the Scot the chance to win the first set 6-2.

Ferrero looked certain to lose the opening game of the second set on his serve but fought back from love-40 to lead 1-0, showing the first signs of the form which catapulted the Spaniard into the semi-finals.

It was Murray's turn to wobble and a stunning rally ended with Ferrero making it love-30 thanks to a wonderfully executed back-hand drive.

But Murray was soon in front with two successive aces of 132mph and 134mph. It was vintage stuff from the world number three who went on to make it 1-1.

But the Scot missed an opportunity to break Ferrero's serve in the third game and struggled to make it 2-2 as the Spaniard finally woke up.

Ferrero played his best tennis of the semi-final at this point and Murray found it difficult to break the Spaniard's serve.

However, the breakthrough for Murray finally arrived in the seventh game when Ferrero's overhit return gave the Scot a break of serve and a 4-3 lead.

The match moved towards its inevitable conclusion when Murray's dominance put him 5-3 ahead.

Ferrero kept himself in with a chance of saving the set when he held serve to make it 5-4 but Murray finished him off in the next game to take the match 6-2 6-4.

The Scot has no preference as to who he meets in the final but Roddick, gunning for a fifth title at Queen's is favourite to make it.

"I've played Andy Roddick quite a few times and he's got a great record here. I won't pick one or the other but it will be a tough match whoever I play."

Djokovic through to semis

Novak Djokovic made short work of Jurgen Melzer to advance to the semi-finals of the Gerry Weber Open in Halle.

The Serbian had to save five match points before edging past Florent Serra in his last outing, but had no such worries today as he romped to a 6-6 6-4 success over the seventh seed in one hour six minutes.

World number four Djokovic is now the only seed left in the tournament.

The Austrian's serve let him down badly as he got just 47% of his first serves in - compared to his opponent's 76% - which left him in no position to trouble the second seed.

Djokovic broke four times, dropping his own serve once, to claim victory.

Other quarter-final winners were Phillip Kohlschreiber, Tommy Haas and Olivier Rochus.

Kohlschreiber defeated Andreas Beck 3-6 6-3 6-3, Haas saw off Mischa Zverev 7-6 (7/5) 6-2 and Rochus fought back to beat Benjamin Becker 6-7 (4/7) 6-3 6-3.

Sharapova advances to semis

Maria Sharapova remained on course for a third grass-court title at Edgbaston, moving into the semi-finals of the AEGON Classic.

Sharapova started well against Belgian opponent Yanina Wickmayer but was forced to work hard over three sets for a 6-1 2-6 6-3 win.

The Russian, unseeded in the tournament after plunging down the rankings due to an injury lay-off, hammered down seven aces as she produced a series of strong service games in a match which stretched to one hour and 45 minutes.

"I thought I started off really well and the tennis was at a pretty high level," Sharapova, the winner in 2004 and 2005, said.

"But I started slowing down in the second set and let her get back in the match. She looked pretty comfortable on the grass.

"We've always had pretty difficult encounters and I just played her last week at the French Open and it was three tough sets, but that was on clay, and this is a new tournament and a different surface. But she is always a tough one to play and we have always had very tough battles."

Sharapova will face China's Na Li in the last four tomorrow, after the latter progressed with a straight-sets victory over Stefanie Voegele.

The fourth seed, the highest-ranked player in the last eight, comfortably won the first set 6-3 but was forced to a tie-break in the second by the Swiss, coming out with a 7-6 (7/3) win.

The other semi-final will be contested between India's Sania Mirza, who ousted Melinda Czink 6-1 7-6 (7/4), and Slovakian Magdalena Rybarikova, who bettered Urszula Radwanska in straight sets to win 6-3 6-3.

Satisfied Mirza said: "I struggled a little in the clay season, so it's great to be finally on the grass as I always play well on it.

"I was just trying to play my game as much as possible today and be aggressive. It's been a great week so far and a great tune-up for Wimbledon. Hopefully I'll have a good match tomorrow."

Johansson calls time on career

Former Australian Open champion Thomas Johansson has announced his retirement from tennis.

The 34-year-old Swede beat Marat Safin to claim his only Grand Slam crown in 2002 but he has struggled with a succession of injuries.

"After a lot of thought, I've decided to end my professional tennis career with immediate effect," Johansson, a former world number seven, said on the ATP's website.

"Last Autumn, I underwent yet another operation for a foot injury and, one month ago, I became a father for the second time."

Johansson claimed eight ATP titles and also won Olympic silver the in doubles with Simon Aspelin in Beijing in 2008.

He also made the semi-finals at Wimbledon in 2005 where he lost to Andy Roddick.

"Looking back at my life as a tennis professional, I'm very pleased with all that I have achieved on the tennis court," he added.

"As a junior I dreamed of getting the chance to play on the big tennis stages around the world. This dream came true for me many times, not least, when I won the Australian Open Grand Slam title in Melbourne.

"Despite being unlucky with injuries during my career, which were very tough and frustrating for me, I'm very pleased that I was able to fight my way back into the top 10 on two occasions, reaching a career high of seven.

"Now the journey has come to an end and it is time for me and my wonderful family to go down another path to new destinations.

"I still love tennis and wish to share my knowledge and experience with Swedish tennis in the future."

Fish blocking Murray's path

Mardy Fish hopes to net his biggest prize by capturing the scalp of tournament favourite Andy Murray.

American Fish, the tournament's number eight seed, faces the Briton on the centre court later buoyed by praise from Murray ahead of their encounter.

Fish despatched Feliciano Lopez 6-1 6-4 and although Murray made light work of beating Guillermo Garcia-Lopez 6-4 6-4 in his third round clash, the Scot acknowledged that he will have to step up a level against Fish.

"Fish is a very good grass court player," said Murray. "I will have to raise my level to beat him.

"I have played him a few times and we get on well. Like I say, he's a very good grass court player.

"He has a big serve and likes to come to the net. He likes short points, so, you know, I'll have to pass and return well."

Andy Roddick, bidding to be the first player to win the tournament five times, managed to eclipse another four-time champion, Lleyton Hewitt, 7-6 (7-2) 7-6 (7-4) to reach the quarter-finals.

Their game was initially held up on centre court because of a security scare. A bomb threat had been discovered pinned to a wall just before the game was set to start - however, following a thorough search nothing was found and the game got under way.

The two former world number ones have dominated the AEGON Championships in recent years, sharing eight titles between them since the turn of the century.

But Roddick, the tournament's number two seed, proved too powerful for Hewitt in their 11th meeting.

The American now faces Ivo Karlovic, the tournament's number nine seed, in today's quarter-final.

Defeated Hewitt did not believe the delayed start had any bearing on the eventual outcome of the game.

"We weren't told anything," said Hewitt. "They just said that we had to wait, there was something going on. There obviously was a bit of a commotion out on the court. We weren't 100% what was going on.

"We're professional enough now and experienced enough to go out there as soon as we had to.

"Not many guys are going to beat him on this surface. There are only a handful of guys who have the opportunity probably if he's serving that well."

Winner Roddick is already focusing on his forthcoming battle with the Croatian.

Roddick said: "Against Ivo there's so much that's out of your control. "A guy serves huge from 6ft 10in, a lot of times - you're going to be walking side-by-side spectating.

"I think you've just got to focus on holding your own serve, and I've done that against him in the past.

"The only thing you can do is put yourself in a position to succeed, and it's a matter of if you get a shot or not."