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ROGER FEDERER

Federer survives thriller to earn Djokovic clash

Roger Federer will face Novak Djokovic in the final of the ATP Tour Finals after the world's top two both survived dramatic semi-finals at London's O2 Arena on Saturday.

Federer survives thriller to earn Djokovic clash
Photo: AFP

Federer the world number two, saved four match points before defeating Stan Wawrinka, 4-6, 7-5, 7-6 (8/6), while world number one Djokovic emerged from his first serious test of the tournament with a 6-1, 3-6, 6-0 victory over Japan's Kei Nishikori.

Federer looked down and out when Wawrinka served for the match in the final set, but the six-time champion responded superbly and eventually booked his ninth appearance in the final of the season-ending event.

Djokovic had swept through the group stage in imperious style, but he was pushed harder by Nishikori, who became the first player to take a set off him since October, before a strong finish secured the Serb's fourth appearance in the final.

Djokovic, who has lifted the Tour Finals trophy three times, remains on course to become the first man to win the event three years in a row since Ivan Lendl in the 1980s.

The 27-year-old has now won 31 successive indoor matches, including 14 at the Tour Finals.

"Kei was playing great and this has been the best season of his life but he made some crucial double faults in the third set," Djokovic said.

Federer held his nerve impressively despite an erratic performance in the best match of a tournament sorely lacking memorable encounters this year.

The 33-year-old has now saved 11 match points in three winning causes this year, with the others against Gael Monfils at the US Open and Leonardo Mayer at the Shanghai Masters.

The 124th final of Federer's illustrious career is a rematch of this year's Wimbledon final, which Djokovic won in five sets.

Federer has met his great rival on 36 occasions, winning 19 times, but the world number one has won their last three finals, including at the Tour Finals in 2012.

"I think I got lucky tonight. Stan played better from the baseline and that usually does the job on this court. But I kept fighting," Federer said.

"It's tough but I'm thrilled to be in another final in London.

"Novak is playing great tennis. It usually brings the best out of me, it's going to be tough but I'll give it a shot."

Federer raced into the last four with a dominant run of three successive victories, for the loss of only 13 games, which peaked with a brilliant 6-0, 6-1 thrashing of Andy Murray on Thursday.

He had also won 14 of his 16 previous meetings with Wawrinka, who will join forces with his fellow Swiss for the Davis Cup final against France next weekend.

Yet there was no sign of any inferiority complex from Wawrinka took the first set.

A tense second set saw 11 successive holds of serve until Federer pressured Wawrinka into a pair of crucial errors that gifted him both the game and the set.

Federer immediately fell behind in a controversial opening game of the final set.

With Wawrinka leading 30-0 on Federer's serve, the world number four's shot was called out by a line judge, only for the umpire to quickly reverse the call.

But Federer didn't hear and instead of challenging the decision, he played on thinking he had won the point, only to discover he was 0-40 down when he lost the next point.

Federer remained visibly frustrated by the perceived injustice, adding another layer of drama to a thrilling finale.

Wawrinka had three match points when he served for a place in the final at 5-4, but Federer saved them all and eventually broke back.

In the tie-break Federer led 5-3, then had to save another match point before finally sealing a remarkable victory.

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ROGER FEDERER

Is this the end of the road for Swiss tennis legend Roger Federer?

Roger Federer is talking optimistically about returning to his "highest level" after knee surgery, but does tennis have to start adjusting to a future without the Swiss star?

Is this the end of the road for Swiss tennis legend Roger Federer?
Is it the end of the line for Roger? Photo: Martin BUREAU / AFP

The 20-time Grand Slam winner announced on Wednesday that he would be sidelined until 2021 after his second operation in a matter of months.

Federer remains upbeat, tweeting: “I plan to take the necessary time to be 100 percent ready to play at my highest level.”

In some ways 2020 is a good season to miss after the coronavirus ravaged the tennis schedule. Writing Federer off in the past has proved dangerous.

He returned from a six-month injury lay-off to claim the Australian Open in 2017, winning his eighth Wimbledon crown later that year.

But he will be 40 in 2021 and is now heading into uncharted territory.

Despite his groaning trophy cabinet, there are two factors that will motivate Federer to keep going — the risk of losing his grip on the men's Grand Slam title record and a missing Olympics singles gold medal.

Rafael Nadal has 19 majors, just one shy of Federer's mark and Djokovic has 17.

Spain's Nadal will be fancied to draw level with Federer at the French Open, rescheduled for September, while few would bet against Djokovic winning in New York weeks earlier.

In April, Federer said he was “devastated” when Wimbledon was cancelled for the first time since World War II. Last year he fell agonisingly short at the All England Club, failing to convert two championship points on his own serve against Djokovic.

The Wimbledon grass probably remains his best chance of adding to his Grand Slam collection — he has not won the US Open since 2008 and his only title at Roland Garros came in 2009.

Even though Federer has slipped from the very pinnacle of the game, he is still a major threat to Nadal and Djokovic.

'Golden' ambitions

Last year, the world number four had a 53-10 win-loss record and he reached the semi-finals at the Australian Open in January in his only tournament this year.

Federer, who is still six ATP titles short of Jimmy Connors' all-time record of 109, has one glaring omission from his CV — the Olympic title.

The Swiss won doubles gold in Beijing in 2008 with compatriot Stan Wawrinka but lost in the singles final to Andy Murray in London four years later.

The postponed Tokyo Games will almost certainly be Federer's last opportunity to complete a career “golden” Grand Slam — he will turn 40 on the day of the closing ceremony next year.

Tennis will feel the loss of the elegant Federer keenly when he walks off the court for the last time.

Djokovic and Nadal have been the dominant forces in recent years but the Swiss remains the biggest draw and last month topped Forbes' list of the world's highest-earning athletes.

His last appearance on court was in front of nearly 52,000 fans — touted by organisers as a world record for tennis — at a charity match against Nadal in Cape Town in February.

Federer is nearly always the crowd favourite wherever he plays and has proved a perfect ambassador for the sport since he won his first Grand Slam title in 2003.

He certainly expects to be back and competitive next year.

“I will be missing my fans and the tour dearly but I will look forward to seeing everyone back on tour at the start of the 2021 season,” he tweeted.

The avalanche of support from his adoring fans showed they would miss him too, but they will have to get used to a time when he is gone for good.

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