No. 6 Andy Roddick confronts No. 3 Andy Murray

TODAY’S FEATURED MATCHES

Men’s semifinals. World rankings in parentheses.

Andy Roddick (6) vs. Andy Murray (3), Britain

(Murray leads head to head, 6-2, and 1-0 in Grand Slams.)

Europeans long have noted that American tourists are loud and annoying. Well, here’s one case in which an American tourist will note that Europeans are loud and annoying.

Roger Federer (2), Switzerland, vs. Tommy Haas (34), Germany

(Federer leads head to head, 9-2, and 3-0 in Grand Slams.)

On his heady run through the spring and summer at 31, Haas fended off two match points in the third round against Marin Cilic. Most people believe that if he fends off two match points against Federer, Federer will just shrug it off and serve up a third.

ENGLISH BREAKFAST

In case anybody wishes to envy professional athletes for their allegedly glamorous lives, consider that Venus Williams appeases her palate’s sweet cravings by eating cranberry sauce, straight up. “I’m actually a candy addict,” she said. But she can’t have candy because she’s a professional athlete, so, “The closest I can get to, like, sugar, is cranberry sauce and raisins.” When she celebrates a win during a tournament, she said, “It’s with cranberry sauce.” And: “It’s a little strange, I know.”

BRITMANIA

“IN ANDY WE TRUST,” proclaimed the Daily Express, 11 years after Tim Henman made his first of four trips to the semifinals and seven years after screaming headlines in some tabloids begged him to show some (intestines). The thinking goes that while Henmania specialized in hope, Murray Mania specializes in reality. The thinking is very much out loud.

ALSO ON THURSDAY

The men’s doubles draw almost yielded four American finalists. Top-seeded Bob and Mike Bryan breezed to the final in straight sets, and then those upstarts James Blake and Mardy Fish, unseeded, took No. 2 seeds Daniel Nestor and Nenad Zimonjic, the defending champions, into a real fracas before Nestor and Zimonjic won, 10-8, in the fifth set. . . . Venus and Serena Williams, seeded No. 4, were due to play their doubles semifinal on Friday against No. 1 seeds Cara Black and Liezel Huber.

BURDEN OF ROOF

In the hot English weather, the roof still hadn’t closed since Monday night, but forecasters called for a chance of rain and closure on Friday, which could afford Andy Murray an advantage against Andy Roddick given Murray’s 1-0 lifetime under-the-Wimbledon-roof record to Roddick’s limited 0-0.

STATISTIC OF THE DAY

16-1 -- The winners-to-unforced errors ratio posted on a daydream stat sheet by Venus Williams in her semifinal destruction of No. 1 Dinara Safina.

QUOTE OF THE DAY

Serena Williams, on her 28 unforced errors in her long struggle with Elena Dementieva: “My forehand didn’t show up today. I think he went to Hawaii. But I’ve called him and asked her, I should say, to come back for the final. Hopefully, she’ll be back.”

-- Chuck Culpepper