BASEL, Switzerland, Nov. 7 (UPI) -- Novak Djokovic rallied for a three-set win and earned a finals spot against world No. 1 Roger Federer in the Swiss Indoors tennis tournament.
Djokovic, seeded second, earned his ATP-best ninth finals appearance of the year with a taut 6-7 (4-7), 7-5, 6-2 win over No. 5-seeded Radek Stepanek. Djokovic fought off three Stepanek match points before taking control.
"I just tried to focus on the next point," said Djokovic about being down 0-40 with three match points against him. "I tried to get some serves in and go for my shots. I didn't think about the pressure of losing and, luckily for me, it worked."
Federer posted a 7-6 (9-7), 6-3 win over Marco Chiudinelli in his semifinal. As usual, it was a workmanlike effort from Federer, who dropped just 12 points over 11 service games.
Federer, looking for his fourth consecutive Swiss Indoors title, owns a 9-4 career advantage in matches against Djokovic, including wins the last two times they met. One of those was a straight-set decision in the U.S. Open semifinals.
The winner of Sunday's title match will collect $430,000.
| Additional News Stories | |
HOMESTEAD, Fla., Nov. 22 (UPI) --
Kyle Busch clinched the Nationwide points title by winning the Ford 300 auto race at the Homestead-Miami Speedway.
|
HENRIETTA, N.Y., Nov. 22 (UPI) --
Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin appeared in South Strabane, Pa., and Henrietta, N.Y., in promotion for her book "Going Rogue," event organizers said.
|
|
|