Roger Federer insists it does not matter whether semi-final opponent Lleyton Hewitt or American Andy Roddick is seeded higher at Wimbledon.
Federer has made it crystal clear he would rather face Roddick, who was controversially given the No 2 spot by the Wimbledon committee, in the final as he pursues a hat-trick of titles.
The Swiss master brushed off Chile's Fernando Gonzalez 7-5 6-2 7-6 to take up his familiar position in the last four and if he keeps up this form, he is likely to walk off with the title again.
But he said: "The rules are the way they are. It's the only tournament in the world where it is like this but now that Lleyton and Andy are both through to the semi-finals, these questions are going to come up again and I think the way Andy played the last couple of years I think he deserves to be the No 2.
"But Lleyton is the No 2 player in the world and he deserves the No 2 seeding as well. It is a tough call. I hope that neither of the two guys is angry about it, although I think Lleyton is, but I don't think it will play a role in our match."
Hewitt refused to discuss the issue when asked earlier in the tournament, but it is obvious Federer is happy to face him tomorrow and leave Roddick's big serve for the final.
He said: "Andy is always fair and, no matter what, I always enjoy playing against him. It is good to have a great American again after Andre Agassi, Pete Sampras, Michael Chang and Jim Courier.
"Lleyton? I don't need a tape to know about his game. I have seen enough of him live this week and we have played so often we don't need to have spies around."
Hewitt, however, has added a serving edge to his game since recovering from cracked ribs that kept him out of the French Open with 15 aces in the 7-5 6-4 7-6 destruction of Spanish left-hander Feliciano Lopez.
Hewitt last beat Federer in the Davis Cup just after the 23-year-old had won Wimbledon following the Australian's shock first-round defeat as champion by Ivo Karlovic in 2003.
However, Hewitt has returned remarkably well from an injury-hit spell earlier this year and his returning is as good as ever - if not better.
He said: "Federer really has taken his game to a new level in the last couple of years and I have to find a way to deal with that. He has looked nearly unbeatable but you have still got to go out there and find something that stops him having his best day."
Roddick's exhausting five-setter against Frenchman Sebastien Grosjean was a lot tougher than expected, so he is taking nothing for granted over semi-final opponent Thomas Johansson.
He said: "Sebastien gave me a real test but there was a lot of heat on me coming into this tournament and I need a big result here. I am only 22 and still going up in the world but whoever it is at this stage you are going to have to play a helluva match to win.
"I am very concerned about my next opponent and when you get to the last four at Wimbledon you don't start overlooking people."
Johansson, the first Swede to reach the semi-finals since Stefan Edberg in 1993 and the oldest man at 30 in the last eight, was surprised by the relative ease of his 7-6 6-2 6-2 triumph over David Nalbandian.
"He's a great player and a great fighter and the tie-break was really tough but I was lucky to get the last point with a backhand down the line and the rest just seemed to go my way. I was really surprised.
"I don't know about Edberg. I think I am more like Mats Wilander, staying back all the time, but I have worked hard to get this far and I am happy to be in a semi-final."
Johansson won the Australian Open in 2002 but he wrecked a knee later that year and missed the whole of the following one after surgery. "A lot of people thought I was not coming back and the first tournament I played after the operation I agreed with them. I practised for five or six days and did not win one set but it turned out I was practising with the winner, a finalist, and a semi-finalist. So apparently I was playing really well."
