Roger Federer believes the pressure will all be on Novak Djokovic when the pair meet in the French Open semi-finals on Friday. Victory for Djokovic, the second seed, will see him replace Rafael Nadal as world number one, while he would also equal John McEnroe's 1984 record of 42 matches unbeaten at the start of a season.
With so much on the line, Federer says he can afford to approach the encounter in a more relaxed frame of find than his adversary. "There's less at stake for me than for him," said Federer, the 2009 champion.
"He's got a lot of things going on. I'd love to be in a Grand Slam final, because I haven't achieved it for a few Slams, but it's nothing major for me, as long as I keep playing well." The burgeoning rivalry between Nadal and Djokovic, who has beaten the Spaniard in three Masters finals this year, has cast Federer into the unfamiliar role of support act.
The great Swiss is seeded outside the top two at Roland Garros for the first Grand Slam since Wimbledon in 2003, while he is also without a title at a major since the 2010 Australian Open.
Despite his crown having slipped, however, the 29-year-old 16-time Grand Slam-winner says he is not desperate to keep Djokovic from the number one position. "It's not the driving force behind this match, to be honest," he said, after beating French ninth seed Gael Monfils 6-4, 6-3, 7-6 (7/3) in the last eight. "For me the plan is trying to get a step further and into the final at the French Open. That's the big picture, that's what I entered for.
"It wasn't to stop Novak." Djokovic has assembled a 43-match winning streak since the end of 2010 and Federer said the 24-year-old world number two was coping admirably with the strain of putting together such a run.
Comments
Comments are closed for this article.