Roger Federer turns 44 today. The 20-time Major winner retired from tennis in September 2022 after dealing with a knee injury for nearly three years. Roger still inspires many tennis fans around the world.
Last month, he visited Wimbledon on the day of his first title at the All England Club in 2003, watching Novak Djokovic and Jannik Sinner from the box.
Celebrating Federer's 44th birthday, TennisTV released a video of his incredible performance against Djokovic in the 2012 Cincinnati Masters final. The Swiss ousted the Serb 6-0, 7-6 for his fifth Cincinnati Masters crown.
Roger toppled Novak in the opener and provided he only bagel in their 50 matches on the Tour! The Serb raised his level in the second set and wasted a set point before dropping the tie break 9-7.
Thus, Djokovic finished as the runner-up in Cincinnati for the fourth time in the previous five years! The Swiss dropped only 14 points on his serve in the final, facing no break points and keeping the pressure on his opponent.
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Roger landed 28 winners and 18 unforced errors, taming his strokes nicely and wrapping up a perfect week with a trophy. Let's focus on that opening set that earned a place in history of their H2H.
Novak played a loose forehand in the first game of the match to lose serve, which is never a good sign. Federer landed a forehand down the line winner in the second game to cement the lead and open a 2-0 advantage.
Djokovic struggled again in the third game. The younger player sprayed a double fault in the third game to experience another break and fall further behind. Roger landed four service winners in the fourth game, forging a 4-0 lead after 11 minutes!
The Serb could not find a way to impose his strokes and shake off the pressure. He hit another break point in the fifth game and offered the Swiss a break chance.
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Federer drew Djokovic's forehand error and provided another break that sent him 5-0 in front. Roger served for the set in game six and painted a forehand down the line winner on a set point, clinching the first part of the duel in 20 minutes.
