Novak Djokovic continued his Australian Open dominance after defeating Roger Federer 6-1,6-2,3-6,6-3, in what was an outstanding performance.
The semifinal clash in Melbourne was the 45th meeting between the two players. With the tie level at 22-22, many were expecting a tough battle between the two legends of the sport. On the other hand Djokovic had other intentions with his blistering start to the match.
The world No.1 made a lightning start after breaking Federer in his first service game due to the Swiss producing a duo of unforced errors. The sharpness in Djokovic’s shots overwhelmed his opponent as Federer continued to fire a series of unforced errors. During the sixth game a backhand shot from the 17-time Grand Slam champion went beyond the baseline to hand Djokovic two chances for a double break. The double break for a 5-1 lead was sealed after a deep forehand from the Serbian resulted in Federer hitting the ball into the net. The set was clinched after only 22 minutes when Federer failed to successfully return a Djokovic serve down the line. The outstanding displayed from the defending champion answered questions surrounding Djokovic’s current form. The world No.1 has spent an extra three hours and 26 minutes on the court during the tournament than Federer, due to his five sets encounter with Gilles Simon in the fourth round. Nevertheless, his opening set display was a stark reminder of why he is the best in the world.
Djokovic has lost to Federer 22 times in his career, however, he only once lost to the Swiss great after being a set up. The Serbian extended his dominance during the early stages of the second set after a world class 142 km/h forehand winner down the line rewarded him with a triple chance to break for a 2-1 lead. Djokovic clinched the break after another costly error came off Federer’s racket. The outstanding display from the Serbian continued as he broke Federer in his next Service game with a deep return to extend the lead to 4-1. The reaction of the Melbourne crowd to the world No.1’s performance was a mixture of admiration and shock concerning the one-sidedness. Admirably Federer kept battling past a sublime Djokovic as he fended off two set points to force the top seed to serve for the second set. The task was straightforward for Djokovic as he held to love after error No.24 from the Swiss handed him the second set.
The match might have been in the Djokovic’s control, however, the crowd was still cheering for Federer with the hope that he could stage one of the greatest comebacks of his career. As the crowed cheered for the 34-year-old, Federer claimed back-to-back service games during the start of the third set, an accomplishment which hasn’t been able to do in the first two. After an hour of match play Djokovic finally encountered the expected mighty resistance from Federer. The seventh game of the third set turned out to be the game of the match as Federer produced a variety of outstanding shots to finally break Djokovic’s serve with his fourth break point, prompting an almighty cheer from the crowd.
Magical point by Roger Federer! #hotshot #AusOpen pic.twitter.com/r8Gg7JnkPL
— We Are Tennis (@WeAreTennis) January 28, 2016
As Djokovic trailed for the first time in the match, Federer worked his way to a chance to serve for the set. The Swiss squandered his first two set points with a duo unforced errors before it was third time lucky after a shot from Djokovic sailed out of the court, sparking further celebrations in the Melbourne crowd.
There was then another twist to the match after a pending storm prompted the roof to be closed on the Rod Laver Arena. The tension was clear as Djokovic lead two sets to one. Federer had a small opportunity to break his opponent when the fourth set got underway after racing to 30-0 but failed to capitalize as Djokovic won four consecutive points. After two hours of play, the match turned more towards a mental battle as both players matched each other game by game. Djokovic maintained his offensive in what was a pivotal seventh game of the set. A shot from the work No.1 painted the top of the net before going in to give him a break point, breaking the hearts of the Federer camp. He then converted the break to lead 5-3 after a deep return proved too problematic for the Swiss. These two points bizarrely decided the outcome of the match. Serving for the match, Djokovic raced to 40-0 before clinching the match after a Federer backhand into the net.
During his 23rd win over Federer, Djokovic produced 10 aces, 33 winners and 20 unforced errors. The Serbian also won 73% of his service points compared to Federer’s 56%. Following his victory, the world No.1 spoke with Jim Courier about his performance.
Do I smell or something? Novak’s hilarious interview #Ausopen Watch more https://t.co/Ek545Zh2D9 https://t.co/rbR3uhUcA9
— Australian Open (@AustralianOpen) January 28, 2016
The triumph over Federer has booked Djokovic a place in his fifth consecutive Australian Open final, 19th Grand Slam final overall. He now ties Stefan Edberg with 56 wins at the Australian Open, the second highest in the modern era (Federer leads with 80). He also now leads his head-to-head against Federer at 23-22. The world No.1 now has a winning head-to-head against Federer, Andy Murray, Stan Wawrinka and Rafael Nadal.
