MELBOURNE, Australia — His much-touted rematch at the Australian Open against Marat Safin a dud, Roger Federer decided to talk less about his own stellar play and more about two guys who will soon put away their rackets.

Federer avenged his 2005 Australian Open semifinal defeat to Safin with an overpowering 6-3, 6-2, 7-6 (5) win at Rod Laver Arena, keeping him on track for a 14th Grand Slam singles title that would tie him with Pete Sampras for career majors.

Told after his match that Safin has said this will be his final year on tour, and that retiring French veteran Fabrice Santoro was commemorated on court after his loss Friday, Federer expressed how much he'd miss them both.

In the case of two-time Grand Slam champion Safin, it's not hard to figure — the win Friday gave Federer a 10-2 career record against the temperamental Russian.

"He brings something different to the tennis world with his character, the way he is on the court and the way he is off the court," Federer said. "He's larger than life.

"I respect him for what a competitor he is. I hope it's not the last one tonight."

Sampras once called Santoro "The Magician" after the deft Frenchman beat him in a three-setter in 2002.

The 36-year-old Santoro, who plays double-handed forehand and backhand and is a master of spin, has never gone past the quarterfinals in singles in 66 Grand Slam events.

Federer echoed Sampras' comment after Santoro made his 18th appearance at the Australian Open.

"I guess he's one of those magicians that's going to leave the game," Federer said. "His game is not very easy to play at this stage. Players are getting stronger and faster and more powerful.

"I was fortunate enough to learn things from him, because he's quite a tricky player to play against. He teaches you how to treat a tennis ball ... not to go crazy about it."

Federer had all the answers on court against Safin on Friday, but was stumped when questioned about how he might retire.

"That's a tough call," Federer said. "I guess saying it one year in advance it's kind of tough, too. Everywhere you go they make a big deal about it."

"If you just say, like (Andre) Agassi, for instance, he did it at Wimbledon (in 2006). The U.S. Open (and) it was all done. It's a shorter period. Maybe less pressure to play, and then that's it."

But Federer is not sure which way he'll go.

"Some people just do it at their last match," he said. "Bang, that's it. I don't know what type of guy I am. I'm not thinking about it."

A guy who is — Safin — said the player he'll miss most is Federer. They gave each other a big hug at the net at the end of Friday's match.

"We've known each other since '94," Safin said. "We had some great matches. We grew up together. I respect him as a tennis player, as a person. Let's put it this way: He's a very close colleague of mine."