Djokovic and Federer face off in Dubai final

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  • Novak Djokovic takes on Roger Federer in the final of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championship,

    Novak Djokovic’s history with Roger Federer in Dubai goes back eight years and today, the pair, who together own a combined 10 titles here, will face-off for a fourth time at the Aviation Club.

    In 2007, Djokovic, still a teenager and yet to break into the top-10, would walk around the Irish Village almost unnoticed while Federer was already a 10-time grand slam champion.

    The Serb lost their quarter-final in three close sets and would go on to earn his first victory over Federer six months later in Montreal.

    “At the time it was one of my biggest matches,” Djokovic said of his first Dubai meeting with Federer. 

    “I think we played quarters or something like that in this tournament. Of course when you play Roger, it’s always a great challenge. He brings out the best game in you, makes you play your best tennis.

    “I feel like this is the kind of a surface and conditions that suits his game the best.

    “I need to be ready for the battle. I need to be ready to stay focused throughout the whole match, and hopefully I’ll be able to do that.”

    Eight years and eight grand slam trophies on from that quarter-final in 2007, Djokovic finds himself once again up against Federer, this time in the finals.

    He is 1-2 against the Swiss on these courts and 17-19 lifetime.

    They each booked their spots in the final in contrasting fashion, Federer skipping past 18-year-old Borna Coric of Croatia, 6-2, 6-1 in 56 minutes, while Djokovic was taken the distance by world No8 Tomas Berdych, 6-0, 5-7, 6-4 in a tense affair.

    Djokovic, appearing in his eighth consecutive Dubai semi-final, cruised through the opening set against the Czech in 23 minutes, playing some superhuman tennis. Berdych said it made him feel like he was “on another planet”.

    The world No1 broke in the third game of the second set, and it looked like things were going to end swiftly for Berdych, who had won a mere total of six games in his last two matches with Djokovic.

    Up until that point, Djokovic had only been broken once in the entire week. But Berdych handed him his second break of the tournament to level 2-2. The 29-year-old broke again in game eight and served for the set at 5-3 but Djokovic pulled him back and made it 5-all.

    The top seed could have gone up 6-5 to serve for the match had he not netted a volley that denied him break points. He fell in that game and hurt his finger, and got some medical attention in the changeover.

    When play resumed, Djokovic was broken immediately as Berdych ran away with the set, aided by a sensational passing shot, to force a decider.

    Djokovic opened up a 4-2 gap in the final set, sending his nervous coach Boris Becker to his feet in relief. It was all he needed to secure the win, his 18th over Berdych in 20 meetings, to enter his fifth final in Dubai.

    “Even after the first set that went as perfectly as possible and when I was a break up, I knew that the match wasn’t over,” admitted Djokovic, who is seeking a 50th career title this week.

    “He had room to elevate his game. I just wanted to stay on that level, but it was hard. I started making some unforced errors, backed up a little bit, less first serves in. Then he stepped in.”

    Federer had a far less complicated time on court against Coric, who was given a masterclass by the Swiss Maestro. They exchanged breaks in the first five games before Federer took nine of the next 10 to reach his ninth final here, where he’s chasing a seventh Dubai trophy.

    “I am coming from a over‑two‑week vacation, so I’m very positively surprised how well I’m actually playing right away,” said the 33-year-old legend.

    “Reminds me a bit of Shanghai last year when I took two weeks off and I came back in Shanghai and won. So maybe I should go on vacation a bit more often,” he added laughing.

    “Novak has really dominated again since the end of last year when Paris came around, I guess. Showed up when it mattered the most.”

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