Tennis/ Australian Open: Exit Roger Federer with his 10th grand slam title to the distant sound of Parisian accordions and a whiff of garlic.

The outstanding player of his generation, and possibly of all time by the time he is done, duly won his third Australian Open title, beating Chile's Fernando Gonzalez 7-6, 6-4, 6-4, and now, as last year, will bend his mind and efforts to being fully prepared for the European spring and the French Open, the one major title to elude him.

Most agree that Pete Sampras's record of 14 grand slam victories will be passed with something to spare by Federer, provided he stays fit. But only five players have won all four majors, and Federer's ability to join that elite quintet - Fred Perry, Don Budge, Rod Laver, Roy Emerson and Andre Agassi - is how history will judge him.

And, should he win at Roland Garros in June, then the holy grail of tennis, the calendar grand slam, will be set before him in all its glory. Only Laver (twice) and Budge have achieved that.

"Last year was the first time when I felt that, if all went perfectly, I might be able to do it," said Federer. He won three, but could not get past Rafael Nadal, who beat the Swiss in the final in Paris.

Federer had always said he would not begin speaking about passing Sampras's record until he was more than halfway there. It was, after all, only three years ago here that he won his second grand slam title, after opening his account at Wimbledon in 2003. But he now is.

"It seems like I've come with such big steps in such a short period of time," said Federer, as if barely able to believe it himself.

These are glorious years for Federer, and everybody privileged to be able to watch him, for he has raised the modern game to undreamed of heights, imbuing tennis with athleticism, power, skill and - above all - grace. He is a true artist among the artisans. And on top of that, he is a thoroughly nice guy and a wonderful ambassador of his sport.

Not that his opponents necessarily always see it that way. Poor Andy Roddick had so convinced himself before their semi-final that he had closed the gap on Federer that he was cut to the core to lose in straight sets and made to look a novice.

Gonzalez, to his credit, will be able to look back on his first grand slam final yesterday and remember he was within two points of the first set. As it was, Federer became the first player since Bjorn Borg in 1980 at Roland Garros to win a major title without losing a set. Not that this meant too much to him.

Such feats flow off Federer's racket like a bubbling underground spring feeding the river of history. He is, of course, playing for history these days, with all other tournaments being subsidiary to his grand slam ambitions. He has now played in seven consecutive finals, equalling the record of Australia's Jack Crawford in the 1930s, while his 10 major titles places him on a par with Bill Tilden. Only Sampras, Emerson (12) and Borg and Laver (11) still head him. And drawing level with the last two, heroes of Federer, would be something special for him, the more so if it were in Paris.

Unlike Sampras, who never reached the French Open final and whose best performance on the clay of Roland Garros was a semi-final in 1996, Federer has every chance. Last year he was second only to Nadal on this surface and he will be watching the young Spaniard extremely closely between now and the start of the French Open.

Nadal, the world number two, has been showing signs of feeling the pressure and has not reached a final since he lost to Federer at Wimbledon last year. Here he lost to Gonzalez in straight sets. If Nadal, whose run of matches unbeaten on clay reached 62 at Roland Garros when he defended his title, has not regained his form and brio by the time the French Open begins, then the world number one will feel history is indeed nodding in his direction.

There was a chill in the air and a tricky wind for yesterday's final, and Federer's forehand, his most potent weapon, was some way short of its best in the opening set, with several shots flying yards beyond the baseline.

Gonzalez, the former wild man from Santiago whom the American coach Larry Stefanki has calmed and redirected, stuck to Federer like a limpet, and at 4-4 punished a particularly loose service game to take the lead.

At 5-4 and 40-15 up, it seemed the Chilean's patience would be rewarded. But the champion snapped back, levelled and then won the tie-break with something approaching disdain. This was their 10th meeting and Federer had won the previous nine. Neither man forgot this statistic.

Gonzalez, who will move into the top five today, needed treatment to his right shoulder before the second set, though it was tiredness rather than a serious injury - "Everything was tired," he admitted.

Not so Federer, who fell to the court with "relief" after match point, relief that was almost immediately transfigured into extreme happiness. So for the second year in succession he goes to the French as the holder of three grand slam titles.

History beckons again.

• Guardian Service