Federer swats aside Wawrinka

London, November 22 

Roger Federer set up a showdown with Novak Djokovic when he beat fellow Swiss Stanislas Wawrinka 7-5 6-3 in their semifinal at the ATP World Tour Finals at the O2 Arena.

The 34-year-old six-times champion fell 4-2 behind in the opening set but rattled off four consecutive games to move ahead and cruised through the second set with smooth efficiency.

Wawrinka saved a match point at 2-5 but 17-times Grand Slam champion Federer closed out victory in little more than an hour. World No. 3 Federer, who won all his group matches this week, has reached the final of the year-ender for the 10th time but has not won the title since 2011. Last year, when he also beat Wawrinka in a gruelling semifinal, he conceded the final to Djokovic with a back strain. 

Four-times champion Djokovic beat Rafael Nadal 6-3 6-3 in the day’s first semifinal. 

“When he’s on, it’s hard to play him,” Djokovic said of Federer, who has reached his 10th final at the season-ending tournament for the top eight players in the world. “We always play matches with a lot of tension. There is a lot at stake. I know I have to be on top in order to win against him.”

Djokovic leads 4-3 in 2015, including wins in the Wimbledon and US Open finals, but Federer won in straight sets on Tuesday in the round robin stage. — Reuters