Watch Man, Serena v Sharapova in Aussie Open Final

Haas said the match was taken out of his hands.

"I'm obviously trying to think what I could have done differently after the match like this. But, you know, it's really hard," the German said. "When I got back to the locker room, I looked at the stats that I saw on TV. I knew that it was going to be somewhere close to, you know, what I saw basically is how I felt out there. He had three unforced errors the whole match and 45 winners, a very high personal of first serves. Just really pretty much everything he touched tonight seemed to go his way. I felt at times that I didn't even play bad. I mean, I played actually pretty good tennis. Every time I tried to do something differently, he came up with the answer...I just have to hand it to him, tip the hat, say that's too good tonight."

In the women's doubles final Friday, Taiwan wildcards Chan Yung-Jan and Chuang Chia-Jung saw their run come to an end at the hands of 2005 Wimbledon champs Cara Black of Zimbabwe and Liezel Huber of South Africa who claimed their first Aussie Open title 6-4, 6-7(4), 6-1.

Huber damaged her anterior cruciate ligament two years ago and Black teamed with Australian Rennae Stubbs for all of last year.

In the men's doubles final top seeds Bob and Mike Bryan will face off against second seeds Jonas Bjorkman and Max Mirnyi for the fourth time in a Grand Slam final.

Australia found some hope in the boy's singles semis Friday where unseeded Brydan Klein adcanced to the final, where he will face No. 2-seeded Frenchman Jonathan Eysseric.

In the girl's final Russian No. 1 seed Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova will meet No. 16-seeded American Madison Brengle.

Sharapova, Williams resume tight rivalry Saturday
From WTA

The 2007 Australian Open final will mark the fifth encounter between Sharapova and Williams, the two having split the previous four. Williams won handily, 64 63, in their first meeting in the early rounds of Miami in 2004, but Sharapova won their next two, both later that year -- 61 64 in the Wimbledon final and 46 62 64 in the Sony Ericsson Championships final (she was 4-0 down in the third there).

Perhaps their most relevant encounter was their most recent battle, a 26 75 86 win for Williams at this very event two years back. In that match, the Russian served for the match in the second and third sets, and even earned three match points at 5-4 in the third, only to fall in the end to the eventual champion.

Both women have impeccable records in Grand Slam finals; Sharapova is 2-0 with the 2004 Wimbledon and 2006 US Open titles, while Williams is 7-2, winning two Australian Opens (2003, 2005), one Roland Garros (2002), two Wimbledons (2002, 2003) and two US Opens (1999, 2002). The American was a runner-up at two majors, the 2001 US Open (to Venus) and 2004 Wimbledon (to Sharapova).

"I'm going to be playing a player that didn't expect too much coming into this tournament," Sharapova said. "She's playing really good tennis and has nothing to lose; those are always dangerous opponents. But we've played quite a few times. We played in Grand Slams before. I'd love to get a win against her here."

"If I play well -- which I don't think I've done at all this tournament -- and I do the things I need to do, it's really hard for anyone on the women's tour to beat me," Williams said. "It just proves I have a lot more to work on and that I haven't peaked, that there is a lot of space for improvement. No matter what happens, I feel like I can improve and I can play better."

TENNIS-X NEWS, NOTES, QUOTES AND BARBS
David Nalbandian will sit out Argentina's Davis Cup tip against Austria, reasons unknown but likely due to a knee injury...Tim Henman has pulled from Zagreb with his knee injury...From The Australian on Serena Williams and Watchgate: "Serena Williams says it is outrageous to suggest her "close friend" deliberately tried to upset her opponent Nicole Vaidisova during their Australian Open semi-final. Television footage highlighted a young man sitting with Williams' entourage at Rod Laver Arena with his left wrist raised to his chin and sunlight reflecting brightly off his watch. Channel Seven commentator John Barrett alleged the pictures were shot while the Czech teenager was serving and the reflection was shining in her eyes. "It is an extraordinary coincidence that whenever Vaidisova is serving, that youngster seems to be getting (the sunlight) into the eyes of Vaidisova," Barrett said. Williams hit back in her pre-final press conference today, describing the story as a fabrication. "I mean, why would it be (deliberate)?" she said. "There's absolutely no reason for that to happen. I just think it's another story for people to fabricate and run off on. There's always something like that."...Tennis writer Bud Collins on Andy Roddick, post-beating: "In theory it's much easier to face a world No. 1 after recently beating him. The challenger's mindset is much more ready to mix it up. But theory isn't reality, and reality was harsh for Roddick as Federer made such quick work of him it was simply amazing. The impact of this loss on Roddick won't be known for a while, but Connors may have more coaching to do on the mental side than on the technical side. He will have to rebuild the confidence Roddick lost against Federer."...Scott Draper has wisely pulled from the potential Lleyton Hewitt coaching mix, deciding to pursue his pro golfing career: "Lleyton was really hoping that I'd say yes," Draper said. "Despite being disappointed he completely understood and was very positive about my decision. We also spoke about his future plans and he is unsure at the moment. He has a lot to think about."...Thank you ESPN's Mary Carillo for fixing that hair...Ana Ivanovic on her website on her split with coach David Taylor: "On the court I was making some improvements but off the court we weren't getting on so well."...Tennis.com's Steve Tignor on the Andy Roddick confidence power outage: "I suppose my disappointment came from the fact that once Federer had weathered the first storm, Roddick didn't bring another one. The self-belief that he and Jimmy Connors had painstakingly rebuilt over the last six months vanished in an instant. Like I said, Roddick looked almost embarrassed that he -- and the crowd -- had come into this match with any hopes, let alone high ones." And on ESPN's Dick Enberg: "The only flaw in the Federer masterpiece was having to hear it described in Enberg's gushing gibberish. After saying Federer is like an "orchestra" and that he was proud to be part of the same "human race" as Federer, Enberg stated that his play was "beyond description." Then don't try to describe it! We can see it ourselves. OK, Enberg is an institution and he means well, but all of the ESPN announcers could take a lesson from their British counterparts -- when there's nothing to say, say nothing."...From the blogging Peter Bodo: "At the next table over sat the BBC's John Lloyd and some of his broadcasting crew. "What did you think of last night?" Lloyd asked. "Man, that Federer," I replied. "I'm still scared." Well, it was kind of true, although the shock and awe so many people felt here last night had slightly faded overnight. In fact, in short order Heinz chimed in and offered the theory that sure, The Mighty Fed had played well, but the more important theme of the night had been how god awful badly Andy Roddick had played in the ritual sacrifice conducted on the Altar of Rod Laver. "You've got to be kidding me," I said, dismissing his contention. I said it was a career-defining match for Federer; nobody had ever schooled a top player so thoroughly on such a big stage. The night belonged to Federer, he lit the skies over all of Australia with his brilliance. The match was about Roddick, Heinz retorted. He played the most absurd match of all time. We're lucky we didn't have a blackout!"...Props to SI.com's Justin Gimelstob for going back out on the needs-to-be-said branch: "I'm going to take some heat for saying this, but I can't be sensitive and ignore the truth: Women's tennis is in a very weak and desperate state. Exhibit A: Serena Williams will be competing for the Australian Open championship at a significantly compromised fitness level. I don't mean to demean or belittle a courageous effort by Serena...That a player can dust off her rackets and make her way through a Grand Slam draw in such a compromised physical state doesn't say much for the WTA's depth at the moment."