Federer in pursuit of Borg's record

LONDON, June 22 (Reuters) His aching muscles are rested, the cream blazer pressed and the eyes of Roger Federer are narrowing in pursuit of a fifth successive Wimbledon title.

The Swiss world number one, overpowered by Rafael Nadal in a bruising French Open final earlier this month, will walk through the All England Club gates on Monday once again an overwhelming favourite for the grasscourt slam.

Like seven-times winner Pete Sampras before him, the 25-year-old Federer has such an aura about him at Wimbledon that the only question seemingly worth asking these days is whom he will beat in the final.

Upsets happen in sport and this season he has occasionally looked a little ragged but Federer, on a grass court in a leafy London suburb, is a ruthless beast.

Should he hold aloft the trophy in just over a fortnight, Federer would become only the second player in living memory to win the title five times in a row, emulating Bjorn Borg who completed his haul in 1980.

It would also put him just two titles away from Sampras's modern era Wimbledon record and take his grand slam haul to 11.

Who, if anybody, can stop him? King of clay Nadal confounded all the pundits here last year by reaching the final where he gave Federer some anxious moments before losing in four sets.

The 21-year-old Spaniard's heavy topspin game appears ill-suited to grass but these days, with the courts more bouncy than in Borg's golden era, he will believe he can muscle his way through the draw again.

Unlike most of his countrymen, Nadal does not approach Wimbledon's manicured lawns like a man confronted by a rattlesnake and it would be ill-advised to dismiss out of hand his chances of becoming Spain's first Wimbledon champion since Manuel Santana in 1966.

American third seed Andy Roddick knows his way around Wimbledon, having locked horns with Federer in the 2004 and 2005 finals.

After losing badly to Briton Andy Murray in the third round here last year, a drifting Roddick hired Jimmy Connors and the former Wimbledon champion has encouraged him to maximise his all-guns-blazing style.

Roddick captured the Queen's Club title for the fourth time last week and if his serve clicks he will be more than a match for most of the men in the draw.

Serbian fourth seed Novak Djokovic has backed up the hype with results this year, beating Nadal on the way to the Miami title and also reaching the French semis.

The 21-year-old has the weapons to be a big threat on grass, as he proved in reaching the third and fourth rounds in his previous two appearances.

Home crowds will hope Murray, another member of the new generation, recovers from a wrist injury in time to compete although Russian powerhouse Dmitry Tursunov and Czech Tomas Berdych look in better shape to cause a stir.

REUTERS BJR PM0922