Roger Federer lost in straight sets to Serbia’s Novak Djokovic, losing his chance to win a fifth Australian Open. With Rafael Nadal eliminated by David Ferrer, this will be the first major tennis tournament in the past three years where neither Nadal nor Federer made the final.
Djokovic told ESPN that aggression was the key to his victory. “When you have a chance against a player like Roger, you have to use it. You’re not going to get a lot of those. I was aware of that.
“I was aware that this was the court where I could beat him, because I did that three years ago [2008 Australian Open] when I won my first grand slam. I had to step in, take my chances. I did really well.”
Federer, 29 years old, could not match the pace or power of his 23-year-old opponent. Djokovic came out blasting hard shots, primarily to Federer’s backhand, keeping the No. 2-ranked Swiss player on the run. After a hard-fought one-hour set, Djokovic won the tiebreak.
Federer came out with a more defensive strategy in the second set, and pulled ahead 5–2, but Djokovic hung tough and won that set 7–5.
Djokovic told ESPN that aggression was the key to his victory. “When you have a chance against a player like Roger, you have to use it. You’re not going to get a lot of those. I was aware of that.
“I was aware that this was the court where I could beat him, because I did that three years ago [2008 Australian Open] when I won my first grand slam. I had to step in, take my chances. I did really well.”
Federer, 29 years old, could not match the pace or power of his 23-year-old opponent. Djokovic came out blasting hard shots, primarily to Federer’s backhand, keeping the No. 2-ranked Swiss player on the run. After a hard-fought one-hour set, Djokovic won the tiebreak.
Federer came out with a more defensive strategy in the second set, and pulled ahead 5–2, but Djokovic hung tough and won that set 7–5.
