Roger Federer: Looking Ahead at Each Potential Matchup on the Road to a Title
Three players and two matches are what stand between Roger Federer and his second French Open title.
For the first time in eight years, Roger Federer entered Roland Garros with his name outside the top two favourites.
With Novak Djokovic's red-hot form coming into the tournament and the fact that Rafael Nadal is—well, Rafael Nadal, who would give a rat's behind about a 16-time Grand Slam champion and former World No. 1, right?
So, while Djokovic and Nadal have powered their way (not so much "powered" for Rafa as "scraped") through to the semifinals of Roland Garros, Roger Federer has been quietly making his way through the draw without anyone noticing.
While Djokovic and Nadal have dropped a set or two, Federer has hardly been troubled and is yet to drop a set after shooting down seeded players such as Gael Monfils, Stanislas Wawrinka and Janko Tipsarevic.
It's as if Roger is saying, "Bring it on!" as we enter the business end of the tournament.
Here's what he's up against next:
1. Novak Djokovic
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First up for Roger Federer is a blockbuster semifinal clash against current World No. 2 Novak Djokovic.
Federer will attempt to put an end to Djokovic's scintillating run this season after going 43 matches unbeaten. Incidentally, the last time Djokovic lost a game was to Federer back in November in the semifinals of the 2010 ATP World Tour Finals.
Since then, Djokovic has been nothing short of a revelation—first, he helped Serbia win their maiden Davis Cup and then, he went on to power his way through seven tournament wins including the Australian Open.
Statistics
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Federer enjoys a somewhat slender 13-9 head-to-head lead over Djokovic, but that boils down to 0-3 this season.
Djokovic has gotten the better of Federer at the Australian Open, the Dubai Open and Indian Wells—all hard courts. This will be their first clash on clay this season.
The pair have met only thrice on clay in their career, where Federer has a 2-1 lead. Their last meeting on the surface came back in 2009 in the semifinals of the Rome Masters, which Djokovic won 4-6, 6-3, 6-3.
They've met in Grand Slams seven times in the past with Federer winning four of the clashes. This will be their first meeting at Roland Garros.
The match holds extra significance for Djokovic, who has a chance of toppling Rafael Nadal as World No. 1 if he wins, regardless of how Nadal fares in the tournament.
Key Areas
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Novak Djokovic is an aggressive baseline player—and a pretty good one at that!
In the Indian Wells semifinal, Roger even pushed him behind the baseline on a few occasions but the Serb knew exactly how much spin and elevation he had to give the ball.
Djokovic can easily switch sides and wings. He's got one of the best backhands in the game and can pummel you, both crosscourt and down the line.
Whatever you throw at him, he's got the answer!
Djokovic has an enviable 50 percent break-point conversion rate compared to Federer's 38 percent.
He has also won 43 percent of the return games he's played this season while Federer has just managed 27 percent.
In short, do not allow Novak Djokovic to break you. There's no coming back!
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2. Andy Murray
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Andy Murray. Hmm...isn't he up against Rafael Nadal next? Yes.
Then why am I even bothering to include him in this list?
Umm...I dunno...let's just say because I like Scottish people!
In case you've forgotten, Andy Murray beat Rafael Nadal in the quarterfinals of the Australian Open.
Agreed, that was a different surface altogether and clay isn't really Murray's forté, but he did push Novak Djokovic to a tight three-setter in Rome and I'd like to take my chances!
Andy Murray has overcome a sprained ankle, a thrilling and draining five-setter against Victor Troicki and a battling 6'3" Argentine veteran to reach his first-ever Roland Garros semifinal, also becoming the second British man to do so in the Open Era after Tim Henman.
I'd like to take my chances!
Statistics
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Andy Murray surprisingly enjoys an 8-6 career lead over Roger Federer.
But Federer has won the major battles—including two Grand Slam finals and two meetings at the year-end ATP World Tour Finals. Murray has never beaten Federer in a Grand Slam.
Also, all of their 14 previous meetings have been on the hard court, which means this would be their first clash on clay.
Key Areas
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Andy Murray falls in the same category as players such as Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and David Ferrer—great service returners.
Murray has a 52 percent conversion rate of break points and has won 42 percent of his return games this season.
So, Federer will have to up his service game which already boasts an 89 percent success rate.
Andy Murray's serve is one area that has failed him this season. He's won just 72 percent of his service games with just 58 percent of his first serves going in.
This is clearly an area Roger will look to exploit.
3. Rafael Nadal
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Roger Federer vs. Rafael Nadal—the dream final!
Ever since the pair first started trading shots back in 2004, they've created magic each and every time they've stepped onto the court together.
They gave us that epic Wimbledon final three years ago which is regarded as the best final in Grand Slam history!
They share 25 Grand Slams between each other and a clash on Sunday would make it 26.
They are great friends off-court but are still considered as "rivals."
In fact, not many would argue against the fact that this is the greatest rivalry in the game's history!
Statistics
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An encounter in the final on the 5th of June would be their fourth final in five meetings at Roland Garros, with Nadal winning all of their previous encounters.
In 13 previous clashes on clay, Federer has managed to get the better of Nadal on only two occasions.
In finals, Nadal's record is even more impressive—winning 12 out of 18 times. However, the last time they met in a final was at the 2010 ATP World Tour Finals which Federer nicked 6-3, 3-6, 6-1.
Roger last beat Rafa in a Grand Slam way back in the 2007 Wimbledon Final—another thrilling five-setter.
Roger has never beaten Rafa at Roland Garros and would love to put that record straight as he bids to win his second Coupe des Mousquetaires.
Key Areas
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Rafael Nadal has looked vulnerable like never before at the 2011 French Open.
The tournament has seen him drop a set for the first time in the first round—in fact, he dropped two!
He's clearly been stretched in the tournament and although he did overcome Robin Soderling—the man who shocked him in 2009—in the quarterfinal, that was more Soderling's doing than Nadal's.
Nadal's biggest concern in the tournament so far is his backhand. Frankly, considering his standards, his backhand has been nothing short of abysmal! Federer could have a feast on it!
Another area of concern for Nadal is his down-the-line forehand. It hasn't been working. But that isn't something Roger can force upon Rafa to play unless he can cramp him for room to hit.
One of the areas of lesser concern for Nadal, but still important, is his serve.
On clay, Nadal gives priority to positioning and spin rather than outright speed. But he has a winning percentage of 72 on first-serve points compared to Roger's 77 percent. Also, Rafa has won fewer games (84 percent) on his serve than Roger (89 percent).
Agreed, the difference isn't much but it could count for a lot more in crunch situations.
Rafa is also low on confidence and has admitted that he isn't playing his best tennis.
It isn't very often that you find Rafa in such situations, especially at Roland Garros, and Roger would be looking at it with a glimmer in his eyes!
Verdict
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So, Roger has got his task cut out for the remainder of the tournament that could define his legacy.
A lot has been talked about the form of his competitors and rivals as the tournament has progressed and even prior to it.
But Roger seems to have completely blocked himself out from the rest of the world and their opinions and is just concentrating on his game.
He is still the underdog as he enters the semifinal and seems to be loving it!
Two wins stand between him and a coveted second French Open title.
Two wins stand between him and an unprecedented 50 victories in each Grand Slam.
But those are probably the last two things on his mind right now.
Or are they?
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