Novak Djokovic denied Rafael Nadal another installment in his rivalry with Roger Federer, ousting Nadal 7-5, 6-3 to book his own finals meeting with Federer at the Montreal Masters.
Federer and Nadal were on course for their fifth meeting in the finals this season, but Djokovic crashed the party to reach his fifth final this year.
Top-seeded Federer reached the final on schedule in a 7-6 (8/6), 6-2 win over Radek Stepanek.
In Djokovic, Federer will face a player he has beaten in all four of their previous encounters.
Djokovic has shined in his first hardcourt tournament in months.
The Serb fired 11 aces and saved all eight break points he faced against Nadal, who won the tournament the last time it was played in Montreal two years ago.
"This is one of the biggest wins of my career. I beat him [on hardcourt] in Miami and I've done it again," Djokovic said. "I played some really impressive tennis. It was a great atmosphere," the winner of three titles this season said.
"He was just too good today," said Nadal, who had won five of his six meetings with Djokovic.
Federer booked his fifth final in his last six tournaments as he won his 40th match of the season.
"I was very happy the way I played today," said the Swiss star, who is just one win away from a 50th career title.
"It was a tough match with a lot of crucial points, a lot of shots played on reaction," he said.
"I couldn't really dictate play, he kept coming at me," Federer said. "But I came up with some really nice passing shots when I had to.
"After while I also started to serve really well, so I was really happy with my performance," he said.
Federer had to fight for 53 minutes to clinch the first set against Stepanek, who is ranked 60th after making a comeback from a nerve injury that affected his racket hand.
The Czech had lost three of four matches against 11-time Grand Slam winner Federer.
While British star Jack Draper spent the past week trying to find rhythm and comfort in his first grass tournament of the season at the Queen’s Club Championships in London, Jiri Lehecka on Saturday bulldozed everything in his path. After more than two furious hours of battle, their form was reflected in the final scoreline as Lehecka toppled a frustrated Draper, the second seed, 6-4, 4-6, 7-5 to reach the biggest final of his career, against Carlos Alcaraz. Lehecka is also the first Czech to reach the men’s title match at Queen’s since Ivan Lendl lifted the trophy in 1990. Draper, who
REUNION: Former Barcelona players Luis Suarez, Lionel Messi, Sergio Busquets, Jordi Alba and Miami coach Javier Mascherano are to face their former coach Luis Enrique Inter Miami’s Lionel Messi faces a tantalizing reunion with former club Paris Saint-Germain in the FIFA Club World Cup last 16 after both sides on Monday progressed to the knockout phase. Miami drew 2-2 with Palmeiras to go through second in Group A, after the Brazilian side fought back from two goals down to seal top spot. They now face an all-Brazil clash against Botafogo, who lost 1-0 to Atletico Madrid, but progressed from Group B in second at the expense of the Spaniards. Champions of Europe PSG won the group with a 2-0 victory over Seattle Sounders, paving the
Dale Earnhardt Jr might already be NASCAR’s most popular crew chief. He is certainly an undefeated one. Pressed into unexpected service, Earnhardt on Saturday called the shots for 18-year-old prospect Connor Zilisch in the No. 88 Chevrolet, as they landed in victory lane in the second-tier Xfinity Series race at Pocono Raceway. “It felt good to have some input and decisionmaking power,” Earnhardt said. “And then helping Connor understand what our plan was so he knew when to push and what he was expected to do.” Earnhardt — who won NASCAR’s most-popular driver award 15 times — made a pit stop from his
Taiwanese women’s doubles star Hsieh Su-wei and Australian teenager Maya Joint on Tuesday eased into the Eastbourne Open quarter-finals in England as Hsieh prepares for the Wimbledon Championships next week. Four-time Wimbledon women’s doubles champion Hsieh and 19-year-old Joint fired two aces and converted five of eight break points to defeat Japan’s Shuko Aoyama and Poland’s Katarzyna Piter 6-3, 6-3 in 58 minutes on the grass court. Hsieh and Joint are today to face fourth seeds Barbora Krejcikova of the Czech Republic and Latvia’s Jelena Ostapenko, who advanced on Monday with a 6-4, 6-3 victory over Quinn Gleason of the US and
RSS