Federer outclasses Djokovic to reach ATP Finals semis, Nadal year-end No.1

Swiss legend Roger Federer produced a near-flawless performance as he made his way to qualify for the last four of the ATP Finals with a 6-4, 6-3 victory over Novak Djokovic on Thursday (November 14).

The third seed Federer started his campaign with a straight-sets defeat to Dominic Thiem but found his best form while avenging his Wimbledon loss by Djokovic.

This defeat means the end of Djokovic’s bid to overtake Rafael Nadal and finish as year-end number one.

The six-time champion Federer looked focused in the game from the start, putting pressure on Djokovic’s serve and dropping just three points on his own serve in the whole set in a raucous packed house at London’s O2 Arena.

The Serbian upped his game at the start of the second set but Federer saved the one break point he faced and broke twice to canter to victory.

The third seed, making his 17th appearance at the ATP Finals, is into his 16th semi-final at the year-end event.

Also read: Thiem into ATP Finals semis as Djokovic and Federer face shootout

Djokovic needed to win the title to have a chance at knocking Nadal off the top spot, but now the Spaniard is guaranteed to finish the year as the top-ranked player for the fifth time, tying him with Federer, Djokovic and American Jimmy Connors.

“Great atmosphere, a great opponent. It was definitely incredibly special. I enjoyed it from the beginning,” said Federer.

“I played incredibly and I knew I had to because that’s what Novak does. It was definitely magical. You guys made it super special, I can’t thank you enough,” he added.

Speaking about what was different from Wimbledon, he said: “I won match point I guess. It was so close at Wimbledon. It was a privilege to play that match, so many ups and downs. I couldn’t be happier right now.”

Federer finishes second in Group Bjorn Borg, behind Thiem, who also beat Djokovic earlier this week. The Swiss will face the Group Andre Agassi winner on Saturday (November 16).

Metronomic Federer

Djokovic looked nervy at the start of the winner-takes-all contest, double-faulting twice in the third game, in which he was broken to love.

As cries of “Let’s go Roger, let’s go” rang around the cavernous stadium, Federer was dead-eyed on his serve, hitting eight aces, including a second-serve ace, in the first set.

Federer’s service level dipped in the second set and Djokovic earned his first break point of the match in the fourth game, which the Swiss saved.

He broke Djokovic again in the fifth game to take an iron grip on the match and repeated the trick to take the second set 6-3.

Djokovic, who now holds a 26-23 advantage, had won their past five meetings, including their epic five-set battle in the final at Wimbledon in July, during which he saved two championship points.

Also read: Nadal faces ATP Finals opener defeat to Zverev as Tsitsipas rises

Djokovic admitted Federer deserved to win, saying he “did everything right” and admitting he himself had played badly.

But he said he was happy with his season overall, adding: “If I have to draw the line, I think it was still a very good season, winning two Slams and five titles.”

In Thursday’s early match in Group Bjorn Borg, which was a dead rubber, eighth seed Matteo Berrettini beat Thiem 7-6 (7/3), 6-3.

In doing so, the 23-year-old became the first Italian to win a match at the season-ending championships.

Fifth seed Thiem did not hit the heights he reached during his three-set win against Djokovic, notching just 12 winners compared with 50 against the Serbian.

Stefanos Tsitsipas has already qualified for the semi-finals from Group Andre Agassi, leaving Nadal, defending champion Alexander Zverev and Daniil Medvedev to scrap it out for the other spot on Friday.

(With inputs from agencies)