Himfr.com reports Federer squeezes into semis, Murray misses out

World number one Roger Federer squeezed into the semifinals of the ATP World Tour Finals on Thursday despite a 6-2, 6-7(5), 6-3 defeat by Juan Martin del Potro and the result also knocked Andy Murray out of the tournament.

Del Potro and Federer both advanced after a three-way tie in Group A, with Murray's elimination literally coming down to the last game after three rounds of group matches.

All three players finished the round-robin stage with two wins and identical 5-4 set records, but Murray had the lowest percentage of games won. Had Del Potro lost just one more game against Federer, Murray would have advanced at the Argentine's expense.

In an earlier match, Murray notched up a 6-4, 6-7(4), 7-6(3) victory over Spain's Fernando Verdasco.

"I'm going to go home, get some rest and then see what happens with the match. I definitely won't watch too much of it. Got to try and look after my body the best that I can, if I get to play another match," said the 22-year-old Scot.

Verdasco's defeat ended a miserable outing for Spain at the tournament. The country was the only nation to field two representatives in the elite eight-man line-up but both Verdasco and Rafael Nadal, who was in Group B, were eliminated.

Besides, the urgent need to boost domestic consumption to combat the global downturn demands that the government lessen the people's educational and other social welfare burdens as much and as soon as possible.

Government-led investment is undoubtedly crucial for the sound growth of the national economy next year. But policymakers should also realize that closing the deficit in public spending on education is equally important.