Roger Federer & Novak Djokovic Fight For Rome Open Title

Top seeded Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer are meeting again on Sunday for the thirty-ninth time at the 2015 Rome Open, and the Serbian tennis star beat the Swiss maestro in their last match. They both had rather simple matches on Saturday giving them plenty of time to rest and get ready, physically and mentally for each other as these two can easily best one another depending on the day and even time of day.

The Rome Open title is one that Federer has yet to win while Djokovic is going for his fourth title crown so you know the action should be very intense as the two will fight for this title for the fifth time in a decade.

2015 – [1] Djokovic vs. [2] Federer
2014 – [2] Djokovic d. [1] Nadal
2012 – [2] Nadal d. [1] Djokovic
2011 – [2] Djokovic d. [1] Nadal
2006 – [2] Nadal d. [1] Federer

WHAT’S AT STAKE:

Winner         $628,100 and 1,000 Emirates ATP Rankings points
Runner-up     $308,000 and 600 Emirates ATP Rankings points

•    FINALS HISTORY:   

Djokovic is bidding for a 24th ATP Masters 1000 title (23-10) and a 53rd overall (52-23)
Federer is bidding for a 24th ATP Masters 1000 title (23-17) and an 86th overall (85-43)

•    RACE FOR NO. 24: Djokovic and Federer are tied on 23 ATP Masters 1000 titles. The winner today will take sole ownership of second place on the all-time list, moving within three of Rafael Nadal.

PLAYER TITLES
Rafael Nadal 27
Roger Federer 23
Novak Djokovic 23
Andre Agassi 17
Pete Sampras 11
Andy Murray 10

•    BIG FOUR DOMINATION: With Djokovic and Federer in the final, the Big Four are guaranteed to extend their run of dominance at ATP Masters 1000 tournaments. After today, they will have accounted for 44 of the last 48 ATP Masters 1000 tournaments (since 2010 Monte-Carlo). The only exceptions came at Paris-Bercy in 2010 (Robin Soderling) and 2012 (David Ferrer) and last year in Monte-Carlo (Stan Wawrinka) and Toronto (Jo-Wilfried Tsonga).

•    MASTERING THE MASTERS: Djokovic has been dominant at this tournament level in recent years, winning 18 of the last 40 (45%) Masters 1000 events. He is chasing a fourth title in Rome, having won here in 2008 (d. Wawrinka), 2011 (d. Nadal) and 2014 (d. Nadal). He has won at least four titles at two ATP Masters 1000 tournaments: Miami (5) and Indian Wells (4).

•    WINNING STREAKS: Djokovic posted the fourth 20+ winning streak of his career this week, and a win today will see him tie his third longest run. He has won 21 matches in a row since his last loss to Federer in the Doha final.

Federer leads the way with seven 20+ winning streaks during his career, followed by Nadal (6), Lendl (4), Djokovic (4) and three players on three: Borg, McEnroe and Sampras. The longest unbeaten run in the Open Era belongs to Guillermo Vilas, who captured 46 wins in a row in 1977.

•    BIG SEVEN TITLE FEAT? Djokovic is on a 36-match winning streak at the highest-level tournaments: Grand Slams, ATP Masters 1000s andBarclays ATP World Tour Finals. The run dates back to his title in Paris-Bercy last November:

2015 ATP Masters 1000 Rome        vs. Federer    36-0
2015 ATP Masters 1000 Monte-Carlo    d. Berdych     32-0
2015 ATP Masters 1000 Miami        d. Murray    27-0
2015 ATP Masters 1000 Indian Wells    d. Federer    21-0
2015 Australian Open            d. Murray    16-0
2014 Barclays ATP World Tour Finals    d. Federer    9-0
2014 ATP Masters 1000 Paris        d. Raonic    5-0

[pdf-embedder url=”http://movietvtechgeeks.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/2015-rome-open-finals-draw-schedule.pdf”]

•    FEDERER CHASING ELUSIVE CROWN: Federer is making his 15th appearance in Rome and is still seeking a first title here. At no other tournament has he appeared more without winning the title. He has reached the final in the Italian capital three times: 2003 (l. to Mantilla), 2006 (l. to Nadal) and 2013 (l. to Nadal).

•    FULL HOUSE: Federer is trying to win his eighth different current ATP Masters 1000 title (ninth overall with Hamburg, which he won when it was a Masters 1000 event). The only two tournaments he has failed to win at this level are Monte-Carlo and Rome. No player has won all nine current ATP Masters 1000 events with Djokovic coming the closest with eight (missing Cincinnati). Here’s a look at the active leading multiple ATP Masters 1000 title winners (with total):

Djokovic     8 (23)    Miami ‘07, ‘11, ‘12, ‘14, ‘15; Montreal/Toronto ‘07, ’11, ‘12; Indian Wells ‘08, ‘11, ‘14, ‘15; Rome ‘08, ‘11, ‘14; Paris ‘09, ’13, ‘14; Madrid ‘11; Shanghai ‘12-13; Monte-Carlo ‘13, ‘15
Federer     8 (23)    Hamburg ’02, ‘04-05, ‘07; Indian Wells ‘04-06, ‘12; Toronto ‘04, ‘06, Miami ‘05-06; Cincinnati ‘05, ’07, ‘09-10, ’12, ‘14; Madrid ‘06, ‘09, ‘12; Paris ’11; Shanghai ‘14
Nadal         7 (27)    Monte-Carlo ‘05-12; Rome ‘05-07, ‘09-10, ‘12-13; Montreal/Toronto ‘05, ‘08, ‘13; Cincinnati ‘13; Madrid ‘05, ‘10, ‘13-14; Indian Wells ‘07, ’09, ‘13; Hamburg ‘08
Murray        5 (10)    Cincinnati ‘08, ‘11; Madrid ‘08, ‘15; Miami ‘09, ‘13; Montreal/Toronto ‘09, ‘10; Shanghai ‘10-11

•    RIVALRY FOR THE AGES: This will be the 39th meeting between Federer and Djokovic. They sit second on the ‘Most Open Era Match-Ups’ table and are now just four meetings behind Djokovic vs. Nadal in first. The pair’s respective coaches, Boris Becker and Stefan Edberg, met 35 times.

DAY 8 FEDEX ATP HEAD2HEADS

FedEx ATP Head2Head: Federer leads 20-18
2006     ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Monte Carlo     Clay     R64     Roger Federer     6-3 2-6 6-3
2006     SUI v. SCG WG PO (Switzerland)         Hard     RR     Roger Federer     6-3 6-2 6-3
2007     Australian Open (Australia)         Hard     R16     Roger Federer     6-2 7-5 6-3
2007     Dubai (U.A.E.)                 Hard     QF     Roger Federer     6-3 6-7(6) 6-3
2007     ATP Masters Series Canada (Canada)     Hard     F     Novak Djokovic    7-6(2) 2-6 7-6(2)
2007     US Open (U.S.A.)             Hard     F     Roger Federer     7-6(4) 7-6(2) 6-4
2008     Australian Open (Australia)         Hard     SF     Novak Djokovic     7-5 6-3 7-6(5)
2008     ATP Masters Series Monte Carlo (Monaco) Clay     SF     Roger Federer    6-3 3-2 ret
2008     US Open (U.S.A.)             Hard     SF    Roger Federer     6-3 5-7 7-5 6-2
2009     ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Miami     Hard     SF     Novak Djokovic    3-6 6-2 6-3
2009     ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Rome (Italy) Clay     SF     Novak Djokovic     4-6 6-3 6-3
2009     ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Cincinnati     Hard     F     Roger Federer     6-1 7-5
2009     US Open (U.S.A.)             Hard     SF     Roger Federer     7-6(3) 7-5 7-5
2009     Basel (Switzerland)             Hard     F     Novak Djokovic    6-4 4-6 6-2
2010     ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Canada     Hard     SF    Roger Federer    6-1 3-6 7-5
2010     US Open (U.S.A.)             Hard     SF     Novak Djokovic     5-7 6-1 5-7 6-2 7-5
2010     ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Shanghai     Hard     SF     Roger Federer     7-5 6-4
2010     Basel (Switzerland)             Hard     F     Roger Federer     6-4 3-6 6-1
2010     Barclays ATP World Tour Finals (England) Hard     SF     Roger Federer     6-1 6-4
2011     Australian Open (Australia)         Hard     SF     Novak Djokovic     7-6(3) 7-5 6-4
2011     Dubai (U.A.E.)                 Hard    F     Novak Djokovic     6-3 6-3
2011     ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Indian Wells Hard     SF     Novak Djokovic    6-3 3-6 6-2
2011     Roland Garros (France)             Clay     SF     Roger Federer     7-6(5) 6-3 3-6 7-6(5)
2011     US Open (U.S.A.)             Hard     SF     Novak Djokovic    6-7(7) 4-6 6-3 6-2 7-5
2012     ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Rome (Italy) Clay     SF     Novak Djokovic    6-2 7-6(4)
2012     Roland Garros (France)             Clay     SF     Novak Djokovic    6-4 7-5 6-3
2012     Wimbledon (Great Britain)         Grass     SF     Roger Federer     6-3 3-6 6-4 6-3
2012     ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Cincinnati     Hard     F     Roger Federer     6-0 7-6(7)
2012     Barclays ATP World Tour Finals         Hard     F     Novak Djokovic    7-6(6) 7-5
2013     ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Paris     Hard     SF     Novak Djokovic    4-6 6-3 6-2
2013     Barclays ATP World Tour Finals         Hard     RR     Novak Djokovic     6-4 6-7(2) 6-2
2014     Dubai (U.A.E.)                 Hard     SF     Roger Federer     3-6 6-3 6-2
2014     ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Indian Wells Hard     F     Novak Djokovic     3-6 6-3 7-6(3)
2014     ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Monte Carlo Clay     SF     Roger Federer     7-5 6-2
2014     Wimbledon (Great Britain)         Grass     F     Novak Djokovic     6-7(7) 6-4 7-6(4) 5-7 6-4
2014     ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Shanghai    Hard    SF    Roger Federer    6-4 6-4
2015     Dubai (U.A.E.)                Hard    F    Roger Federer    6-3 7-5
2015    ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Indian Wells Hard    F    Novak Djokovic    6-3 6-7(5) 6-2

•    Djokovic posted three decisive-set victories over Nicolas Almagro, Thomaz Bellucci and Kei Nishikori, before overcoming David Ferrer 6-4, 6-4 to reach his sixth Rome final.
•    Djokovic returns to Rome for the ninth time. He has now reached at least the QF here on all nine of his visits, winning the title in 2008 (d. Wawrinka), 2011 (d. Nadal) and 2014 (d. Nadal). He finished runner-up in 2009 (l. to Nadal) and 2012 (l. to Nadal).
•    Djokovic leads the ATP World Tour with a 34-2 match record and four titles this season. He has captured victories over the other nine members of the Top 10 this season and he leads the tour with a 13-1 record vs. Top 10 foes in 2015.
•    Djokovic’s lone clay-court outing this year came in Monte-Carlo where he became the first player to capture the opening three ATP Masters 1000 events of the season. In the Principality, the Serb closed with three consecutive Top 10 wins over Marin Cilic, Rafael Nadal and Tomas Berdych.
•    Djokovic is in on a 21-match winning streak, which also includes his title runs in Indian Wells (d. Federer) and Miami (d. Murray). His victory at Indian Wells saw him become the 11th player in the Open Era to win 50 titles, surpassing Rod Laver and coach Boris Becker, who both finished their careers on 49. He now has 52 titles to his name.
•    Djokovic has won 23 ATP Masters 1000 titles during his career, putting him level with Federer (23) and four short of Nadal (27). The trio rank in the Top 3 for titles won at this tournament level.
•    In January, Djokovic became the first man in the Open Era to win fiveAustralian Open titles, defeating Murray in the final. It was his eighth Grand Slam crown, putting him level with Agassi, Connors, Lendl, Perry and Rosewall in eighth place on the all-time list for most major titles.
•    Djokovic’s last defeat came against Federer in the Dubai final in early March. His only other loss this year came in the opening week of the season, falling to Ivo Karlovic in the Doha QF.
•    Since falling to Nadal in last year’s Roland Garros final, Djokovic has posted a 25-2 record against fellow Top 10 players.
•    Djokovic has won a 6-0 set on 10 separate occasions this season. This is the third time he has won 10-more 6-0 sets in a season, after posting 13 in 2011 and 14 in 2013.
•    In 2014, Djokovic finished the season at No. 1 for the third time in four years, winning an ATP World Tour-high seven titles in eight finals. His season was highlighted by capturing a second Wimbledon crown, four ATP Masters 1000 titles and the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals in London.
•    Federer has yet to drop a set this week, advancing to his fourth Rome final with straight-set wins over Pablo Cuevas, Kevin Anderson, Tomas Berdych and Stan Wawrinka. His wins over Wawrinka and Berdych were the second and third shortest matches of the tournament.
•    Federer returns to Rome for the 15th time. He is still chasing a first title here, falling in the final three times: 2003 (l. to Felix Mantilla), 2006 (l. to Nadal) and 2013 (l. to Nadal).
•    Last year Federer stumbled in his opening match at the Foro Italico, losing to Jeremy Chardy.
•    Federer suffered an early exit in Madrid, falling to Nick Kyrgios in his opening match. It was the Swiss’ first loss to a player aged 20 or younger since defeat to Del Potro in the 2009 US Open final.
•    After a 3R loss to Gael Monfils in Monte-Carlo, Federer bounced back by capturing an 85th career title in Istanbul earlier this month (d. Cuevas). Turkey became the 19th different country in which he has won an ATP World Tour title.
•    Only two male players have won more titles than Federer (85): Connors (109) and Lendl (94). Federer captured his first tour-level title here in Italy, winning Milan in 2001 (d. Boutter).
•    En route to his title in Istanbul, Federer became the seventh active player to hit 200 wins on clay.
•    In January, Federer recorded his 1000th ATP match win in the Brisbane final (d. Raonic) before a shock 3R exit at the Australian Open (l. to Seppi).
•    In February, Federer claimed his second title of the season in Dubai (d. Djokovic).
•    In March, Federer advanced to the final of Indian Wells (l. to Djokovic).
•    In 2014, Federer finished in the Top 2 for the 10th time, winning five titles including two ATP Masters 1000 crowns. Aged 33, he was the oldest player to finish in the Top 2 of the Emirates ATP Rankings (since 1973), and was the first to finish in the Top 10 for 13 years in a row (2003-2015) since Lendl (1980-1992). He also won a first Davis Cup title for Switzerland.

Most Meetings In Open Era

DOUBLES FINAL

Pablo Cuevas (URU) & David Marrero (ESP) vs [5] Marcel Granollers(ESP) & Marc Lopez (ESP)

•    Cuevas and Marrero are appearing in their first ATP Masters 1000 final together, second overall. Last year they were finalists in Oeiras (l. to Gonzalez-Lipsky).
•    Cuevas and Marrero first teamed together at the Napoli Challenger in 2009 and won the title. They then played twice in 2010, once in 2011 and four times last year, with their best result coming in Oeiras. They have a 20-14 career record.
•    Cuevas and Marrero are playing together this season (9-7 record going into final). Cuevas is appearing in his 10th career doubles final (4-5) and trying to win his first doubles title since February 2010 in Costa do Sauipe (w/Granollers). Marrero is 10-11 in doubles finals and his last title was the 2013 Barclays ATP World Tour Finals (w/Verdasco). His previous ATP Masters 1000 final came in Shanghai in 2013 (w/Verdasco). He was runner-up in Estoril two weeks ago (w/M Lopez).
•    Granollers and Lopez are appearing in their 14th final together (4-9 record), first this season and fourth at ATP Masters 1000 level (1-2). Their lone ATP Masters 1000 title came in Rome in 2012 (d. Kubot-Tipsarevic). Their biggest title came at the 2012 Barclays ATP World Tour Doubles Finals.
•    Granollers and Lopez have a 126-73 tour-level match record together (9-8 this year) since reaching the SFs in Casablanca in 2010. They first paired up in 2006 at the Chiasso Challenger in Switzerland (1R). They played in six Challengers overall (7-4 record) from 2006-09, winning titles in Turin in 2006 and Mas Palomas in 2007.
•    On the ATP World Tour, Granollers and Lopez won their first title in Rome in 2012 and later that year in Gstaad & the Barclays ATP World Tour Doubles Finals. Last year they won the title in Buenos Aires, their last title together. They were also runners-up at Roland Garros and US Open in 2014.
•    Granollers is 10-14 in career doubles finals (1-3 in ATP Masters 1000) and Lopez is 10-13 in doubles finals (3-2 in ATP Masters 1000). Lopez’s other two ATP Masters 1000 titles came in 2010-11 in Indian Wells (w/Nadal).