Roger Federer: Novak Djokovic Will End Fed-Ex's Roland Garros Run

Listen, I don't like to pick against Roger Federer when I don't have to. He's arguably the greatest player ever, a true gentlemen of the game and a favorite here at Bleacher Report—given how badly I am skewered in the comments every time I predict he'll lose.

But he won't beat Novak Djokovic when the two meet in a French Open semifinal.

Maybe it's because Djokovic is 5-1 in the rivalry since 2011 and won the only meeting between the two this year in Rome.

Maybe it's because the last time Federer beat Djokovic, it was at Roland Garros in a semifinal last year. Certainly, revenge will be on the Djoker's mind.

Or perhaps it is because Djokovic has won three straight Grand Slam titles and is looking to become the first man to hold four titles at once since Rod Lavar accomplished the feat in 1969.

To say that Djokovic has motivation to beat Federer would be like saying that Rafael Nadal is only pretty good at the French Open.

But it is more than just Djokovic's run of success or his motivation to win at Roland Garros—it's his mentality. Against Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, he displayed a tenacity, resiliency and mental toughness that only the true champions possess.

Four times Tsonga had match points, and four times he was pushed away. It was Djokovic who won the fourth-set tiebreaker to stay alive. And it was Djokovic, momentum on his side, who put away Tsonga in a truly dominant fifth set.

Tsonga did everything he needed to do to ensure a victory except earn that final, match-winning point. And it was because Djokovic simply wouldn't let him have it.

Federer has his graceful power, and Nadal his speed and lethal forehand, but perhaps Djokovic's defining trait is his ability to stave off defeat. He's technically precise, is excellent defensively and seems to play his best with his back against the wall.

Even when he doesn't have his best stuff, he often wins simply by outlasting his opponent.

It's that mentality that I think will be the difference. It's not that I think Federer will somehow choke or isn't talented enough to defeat Djokovic. Far from it.

It's that I think Djokovic will survive Federer's best effort and leave just enough in the tank to defeat him.

He's like Sebastian Shaw of the X-Men universe—he absorbs an opponents energy and uses it to defeat them in the end.

Federer will give him all he can handle. He won't give away two sets like Tsonga did, and he won't mentally fold if he fails to take advantage of opportunities to put Djokovic away. He'll be in it until the end, and these two men seem poised to give us an epic, five-set match to remember.

But in the end, Federer's will to win won't overcome Djokovic's ability to avoid defeat, setting up a Djokovic-versus-Nadal final with historic glory hanging in the balance.

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