ATP Finals: Goffin looking to solve the Federer puzzle after reaching semis with win over Thiem

Sport360 staff 23:22 17/11/2017
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  • Searching for solutions: David Goffin.

    David Goffin admitted on Friday he doesn’t “know what to do” against semi-final opponent Roger Federer at the ATP Finals.

    Goffin dismantled fourth seed Dominic Thiem 6-4, 6-1 to set up a last-four contest against the Swiss great on Saturday, but was not full of confidence about his chances at London’s O2 Arena.

    “I’ve never found a key to beat Roger,” said the seventh seed, who earlier in the week launched his tournament by beating world No. 1 Rafael Nadal in three gruelling sets.

    “Honestly, I don’t know what to do tomorrow. But I’m going to try something, something different, something that I’ve never done in the past.”

    The Belgian has never beaten 19-time Grand Slam champion Federer in six matches and most recently clashed with him in Basel last month, where he won just three games in a one-sided contest.

    “I will try to do my best to play a better match than in Basel, for sure,” he told reporters at his post-match press conference.

    “In Basel it was not easy. He played well. He didn’t miss. He was really aggressive, as always. He returned so well. So it was not easy in Basel.

    “I hope that tomorrow he’s not going to play the same match. But I will try something different for sure.”

    The 26-year-old said he would have to change his game plan from the one he used against Nadal earlier in the week as he was facing six-time winner Federer on one of his favoured surfaces.

    “Against Roger, on his best surface, it’s indoor,” said Goffin.

    “It’s this surface, along with the grass. There is no wind. It’s tough to play higher, to find the loop when you play here on this kind of surface.

    “It’s not easy. It’s perfect for Roger. But I will try, like I said, to do my best tomorrow to find some solutions, try to play my game, yeah, be aggressive. If he’s aggressive and he hits the ball really hard with his forehand, he’s dangerous.”

    At 180cm and 68kg, Goffin cuts a slight figure in comparison to most of the players on tour. But he’s been punching well above his weight over the past two seasons, and has made the most of his opportunities to rise to his current position of No. 8 in the world rankings.

    Federer knows the Belgian well, and they spent some time practicing in Dubai a couple of years ago.

    The Swiss world No. 2 says Goffin “deserves” to be at the ATP Finals and is wary of the 26-year-old despite his comfortable 6-0 winning record against him.

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    “We have the likes of (Kei) Nishikori and other players who are also not that big and strong but fast on their legs and return very well, I think that’s a big strength of his (Goffin’s), he can return great, especially off the second serve, he can take a lot of time away from you,” said Federer earlier this week.

    “He’s fast on his feet, I like how he moves, he’s smooth, he’s a good anticipator as well, and he’s really improved his serve. It’s getting better and better.

    “When I practiced with him a couple of years back in Dubai, I was highly impressed with his work ethic as well. His fitness level is very high, he’s able to stay very focused for a long period of time, that shows he can play full seasons for the next 10 years I’m sure.

    “And it’s nice it’s all paying off, that he made the World Tour Finals and stayed calm under pressure and almost exceeded his expectations at the end by winning two tournaments in Asia, put himself in a great position to qualify at the end. He made the most of his opportunities with everybody getting hurt. He deserves to be here.”

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