Federer Advances to Semifinals Against Nadal at ATP World Tour Finals

Federer Advances to Semifinals Against Nadal at ATP World Tour Finals

He may be enduring a rough year, but Roger Federer has an opportunity to end the tennis year on top and show the world he is not finished. Federer beat Juan Martin del Potro in a thrilling quarterfinal match 4-6, 7-6(2), 7-5. 

Federer, No. 7 in the world, trailed in all three sets against #5 del Potro. He faced three break points in the first game and his forehead let him down when one went long. He started the second set poorly, but quickly scoring 12 points in a row to force a tie and ultimately won the set.

“I just have to have the right mindset to give it one last go, maybe play with a little less pressure than I have in previous matches with him,” Federer said. “I just feel like I need to look at it more as being an underdog a little bit because of circumstances, because of my year, because of his year. Maybe that free swinging is what I kind of need to do a little bit more tomorrow.”

Next up is rival Rafael Nadal.

“We know each other that well. He’s going to do exactly what he needs to do, I’m going to try to do what I need to do,” Federer said. “Hopefully, it’s going to match up good for me. If not, he deserves it. He’s had a wonderful season.”

This tournament only features the top eight players in the world, and Federer reached the semifinals in the last 11 of 12 seasons. 2013 is definitely an off year for him and Federer has not won a Grand Slam since 2012 Wimbledon. The only tournament he won this year was in June in Halle, Germany. 

“The goal is always to win every tournament. But I think I had to be slightly more realistic in recent weeks and months,” Federer said. “I knew that sometimes just getting a few rounds into the bag was positive.”

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