In a battle between a defending champion and a former champion, Andy Murray takes his final step towards title defence against none other than arch rival and a name, synonymous with the tournament itself, Roger Federer.

Federer's road to finals has been eventful in many ways. It gave him a chance to settle scores with the man who beat him twice this year at stages no less than Wimbledon. Federer faced stiff competition from little known players in the beginning of the tournament. Argentine Juan Ignacio Chela and Frenchman Michael Llodra had considerable leads over the Swiss before melting down like a 'SWISS' chocolate in front of the man who hails from the land in analogy.  Federer's quarterfinal tussle against Tomas Berdych brought the best out of him when from 3-5 down in the final set, the Swiss star bounced back to secure win. This can be considered one of Federer's most convincing and satisfying performances this year. His semifinal struggle with an error-prone Novak Djokovic was no less impressive as the 16 time major champion came out a winner in a closely fought final set. With such victories under his belt, Federer is surely a front runner in the race.

Federer's opponent in the final waited for almost an year to come close to  winner's circle. In the repeat of the Aussie Open final, Scot Andy Murray will put in his BEST to alter the results this time. In reaching the final, Murray did the inconceivable, atleast under current scenario. He beat the world's best player Rafael Nadal in straight sets to end his non-consecutive streak of titles that include this year's Wimbledon, French Open and three other masters series titles starting  from April. Interestingly, it was Nadal who won the pair's last meeting in Wimbledon, but his semifinal match against the Scot brought no such luck for the Spaniard. Murray's wins over in-form players like David Nalbandian and Gael Monfils also make him a deserving finalist here in Toronto.

Murray leads the head-to-head with Federer by 6-5. Although the last three encounters have been dominated by the Swiss maestro which include a Grand Slam final win in Australia earlier this year. Whether today's final will bring Federer his fourth consecutive win and a return to winner's circle is a question still to be answered.

TennisEarth.com's Pick - No matter how much Murray might have improved, he is yet to solve the Swiss mystery this year, which is why Federer emerges with an edge in the final today and a probable champion too. After all, it's Rogers Cup.....!