Men’s Semifinals: [2] Roger Federer (SUI) vs. [19] Borna Coric (CRO)
Federer knew that Coric would not be a push-over since the young Croat had beaten him in their most recent match on Federer’s favorite surface (grass). Yet, even Federer, the defending champion probably did not anticipate the battle would be so one-sided. Despite sporting a heavily taped right thigh, Coric did not appear too hampered by his injury.
Perhaps the injury helped him to focus better. The realization that he would not fare well in extended rallies forced him to be accurate with his serves and his often sporadic forehand. Federer got off to a slow start and simple never recovered. Dare I say it; he seemed a tad slow and lacking in belief. His one opportunity to perhaps get the match back on track in the first set, he missed an easily volley into the net. Coric never gave Federer any break point opportunities against his serve and that in and of itself was a testament to the quality of serving from the Croat.
Just as in the first set, Federer went down an early break in the second set and once again he could not recover. Perhaps the toll of consecutive days of playing challenging opponents was too much for the Swiss or perhaps his back was an issue. Whatever the reason, he was not at his best and given the significance of today’s match it was a bit surprising.
Yet, let’s remember that Coric is an excellent competitor and the knowledge that he had defeated Federer earlier this season gave him that little extra bit of confidence in today’s match. He was consistent and methodical the entire match. He never lost his focus and kept his emotions under control given the magnitude of what he was about to accomplish. Coric defeated Federer 6-4, 6-4 and denied Federer the opportunity of defending his title.
The challenge for the young Croat in tomorrow’s final will be to play at this level and hope that Novak Djokovic has a slow start since he has never taken a set from the Serbian (0:2).
SOURCE OF IMAGE: serveandrally
