Djokovic and Federer Advance to Clash in Shanghai Semis

October 10, 2014 | By New York Tennis Magazine Staff
Djokovic_Federer_Shanghai

While the Shanghai Rolex Masters has been a tournament full of upsets with a number of top seeds falling early, it will feature a semifinal match between two of the best players the sport has ever seen. Top-seeded Novak Djokovic and third-seeded Roger Federer will face off in the semifinals on Saturday after both men rolled in their respective quarterfinal matches on Friday.

Djokovic played his match first as he took on fifth-seeded David Ferrer. The Spaniard was coming off a huge win over Andy Murray the day before, but Djokovic made it clear from the start that he would not face the same fate as the Scot.

The Serb broke Ferrer in the second game to gain an advantage, and saved two break points later in the set to capture the opening frame 6-4. He picked up two more break points in the second set, including one at 4-2, which allowed him to serve out the match for a 6-4, 6-2 victory in just over 90 minutes.

“The 10th game of the first set was crucial,” said Djokovic, who improves to 29-0 in his career in China. “It was crucial to serve the first set out. Obviously, it was a huge relief because it was very physical, especially towards the end of the first set. He started missing less and making some shots, so it made it a little bit more difficult. But I served well in important moments.”

The win marked the seventh straight time that Djokovic has beaten his Spanish counterpart. He now improves to 52-7 on the season, and will take that match record into a semifinal match with familiar foe Federer.

Federer escaped a first-set tiebreaker in his quarterfinal match versus Julien Benneteau before sweeping the second set to win the contest 7-6(4), 6-0.

Federer fired 11 aces to go along with 34 winners to dominate the Frenchman. He wrapped the match up in 69 minutes, setting up the 36th meeting between the two icons. Federer has a slight 18-17 edge in the head-to-head series of one of the best rivalries in tennis history.

“Roger is one of the best players ever in the game,” said the 27-year old Djokovic. “There is no clear favorite. I think every time we play against each other, it’s a thriller. It’s really a big challenge for both of us. We need to bring our ‘A’ game in order to win.”

Not to be forgotten is the other semifinal match that will be played in Shanghai. Frenchman Gilles Simon followed up his upset over Stan Wawrinka by upending sixth-seeded Tomas Berdych 7-6(4), 4-6, 6-0.

“I’m finding a better rhythm. I feel also physically stronger,” said Simon. “Tomas is a great player. He’s always hard to beat. I think I almost played the perfect match today. It was really tight for two sets. I’m just happy that I won the fight.”

Simon moves on to face Spaniard Feliciano Lopez, who followed up his upset over the hurting Rafael Nadal with a 5-7, 6-4, 6-4 comeback over Russian Mikhail Youzhny.

It is the third time Lopez has reached the semifinals in Shanghai.

“I think it’s going to be a very tough match for me. I have to be very smart tomorrow [and] aggressive,” said Lopez of his semifinal opponent. “He’s very confident, as well. He beat Tomas today. He’s showed some great form during the week.”


New York Tennis Magazine Staff
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