Before the championship even began, there was some controversy revolving around the seeding system at the Wimbledon 2019 Championship. It was because although Rafael Nadal was ranked number two, Roger Federer was seeded ahead of him in the championship.
But with Nadal being knocked out of the tournament in the semi-final at the hands of the Swiss, it’s going to be yet another dream battle between Roger Federer and Serbian Novak Djokovic.
It does not come as a surprise that the top two seeded players of Wimbledon 2019 will be up against each other at the Wimbledon finals and will sweat it out to create history pertaining to their respective profiles.
It is to be noted here that the duo have faced each other as many as 47 times and Djokovic enjoys a lead of three wins, with the head-to-head record standing at 25-22 in favour of Djokovic.
However, post-2011, Djokovic has clearly dominated Federer and that is evident from a 19-9 record in the favour of the Serbian player. In fact, some of these wins in the last eight years have come at arguably the biggest of platforms- with the Wimbledon finals of 2014 and 2015 standing out.
It is worth noting here that Federer’s last win over his opponent in the finals came as far back as in 2015 and that was in the round robin stage of the ATP finals. However, on that occasion too, Federer could not go on to win the title.
Although numbers might tell a different story they might not paint a complete picture. The fact remains that Federer had clearly gone through a slump in form in 2015 and many experts of the game had even gone on to claim that perhaps he should consider retiring from the sport.
But fast forward to 2019, he is back to his best. He has added three Grand Slams to his tally in the last couple of years and in all non-Clay Grand Slams, Federer starts as one of the main contenders.
Moreover, his performance at this Wimbledon has been splendid, his best game coming against his old rival Rafael Nadal in the semifinal. This was the duo’s first game at Wimbledon since 2008 in a match which is widely regarded as one the best ever played on a Tennis court.
One of the highlights of the epic semifinal match was the way Federer handled the pressure. Although it is usually Rafa who has the edge over Federer when there are long rallies, but it was heartening to witness the Swiss maestro playing perhaps his best Tennis during those moments against Nadal in the semifinal.
Federer will need to repeat his semi-final brilliance to win his record 21st Grand Slam against Novak Djokovic. However, it should not be conjecture at all, since on a grass court, Novak Djokovic would hold a slight advantage.
Watch live coverage of the match from 6:30 pm (IST) onwards.