Roger Federer was again in devastating form as he quickly took out the World Number Three, Novak Djokovic, in straight sets in yesterday evening’s ATP World Tour Finals 2010 semi-final match.
Federer got off to a flying start, and maintained to win 6-1 6-4.
Despite a slight wobble – Federer dropped his serve in the opening game of set two – the most gifted player to grace a court kept up his onslaught and dealt with the next-best on the planet with consummate ease.
The manner of the victory means that Federer has not dropped a set in this tournament this year – no mean feat against four of the world’s top eight tennis players – to reach this final.
Federer will meet arch-rival Rafa Nadal in Sunday’s final in the match most fans has wanted – even expected – to see, after Nadal came through in gritty fashion against home hopeful Andy Murray in three gruelling sets of tennis during the afternoon session.
As Nadal showed in his semi-final, he is a very difficult man to beat and, even though Federer is arguably the better of the two on this synthetic indoor surface, it is, as ever, difficult to predict just who will come out on top on the day. Both men can produce the type of shots that only they, and perhaps Murray – on a good day – are capable of. Expect winners from both players, and some grit, power and determination from Nadal.
Federer plays relentless percentages – high percentages – and has the shots to pick off his man at just the right time. Nadal is a hard man to pick off due to his fitness and almost super-human anticipation, and he counter punches with ferocious winners of his own. These are two top class players right at the top of their game. This will be a truly engaging clash.
Nadal (1) v Federer (2) will begin at 8pm on Sunday, 28th November 2010.
In This Story: Rafael Nadal
Rafael Nadal is a Spanish professional tennis player currently ranked world No. 2 in men’s singles tennis by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP).
Nadal has won 19 Grand Slam singles titles, the second-most in history for a male player, as well as 35 ATP Tour Masters 1000 titles, 21 ATP Tour 500 titles and the 2008 Olympic gold medal in singles and the 2016 Olympic gold medal in doubles. In addition, Nadal has held the world No. 1 ranking for a total of 209 weeks, including being the year-end No. 1 five times.
In majors, Nadal has won a record twelve French Open titles, four US Open titles, two Wimbledon titles and one Australian Open title, and won at least one Grand Slam every year for a record ten consecutive years (2005–2014). Nadal has won 85 career titles overall, including the most outdoor titles in the Open Era (83) and a record 59 titles on clay. With 81 consecutive wins on clay, Nadal holds the record for the longest single-surface win streak in the Open Era.
Nadal has been involved in five Davis Cup titles with Spain, and currently has a 29-win streak and 29–1 record in singles matches at the event. In 2010, at the age of 24, he became the seventh male player and the youngest of five in the Open Era to achieve the singles Career Grand Slam. Nadal is the second male player after Andre Agassi to complete the singles Career Golden Slam, as well as the second male player after Mats Wilander to have won at least two Grand Slams on all three surfaces (grass, hard court and clay).
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