Roger Federer vs Novak Djokovic in Cincinnati Final

Swiss ace Roger Federer and Serbian star Novak Djokovic are set to face off in the Cincinnati final. This will be their 46th clash in the ATP circuit including Grand Slams. Of their previous 45 encounters, Djokovic leads the clash with 23 wins to Federer’s 22. Now, the two will square off once again in Cincinnati.

Djokovic has won six of the last 8 encounters with the last one being at the 2016 Australian Open. However, when it comes to Cincinnati, Federer has the better track record. Out of three finals, Federer has won all three in straight sets.

Since the midway point of his quarterfinal against Stan Wawrinka, Federer has looked to be the player who is in better form. He fought tooth and nail to come back from a set down in that match, and fought hard again to edge David Goffin in a first-set tiebreaker in the semis. Federer played those matches aggressively, if slightly erratically, and was able to impose his considerable will in the end. A seven-time Cincy champ who loves the speed of the courts there, Federer has been refuse-to-lose mode, and that’s not a good sign for any prospective opponent.

If Djokovic won, he would lead the head-to-head 24-22. Additionally, he would be the first player to win all Masters 1000 tournaments. But Federer only needed to win to level the head-to-head at 23-23. Djokovic currently has a 51% win percentage compared to 49% for Federer.

Heading into Cincinnati, Novak has won the last 2 clashes between himself and Federer. However, that last win came in 2016, a two-year gap. At that time, the match was stretched to 4 sets with Federer winning the 3rd set.

With regard to straight set wins, out of 18, Djokovic has won 8 of them. Roger Federer has staked his claim on the remaining 10. Who will emerge triumphant in Cincinnati? Only time will tell.