Djokovic Crushes Federer to Seal Final Spot

Novak Djokovic will face Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in Sunday's Australian Open final after the No3 seed produced a superb performance to oust the world No1 and 12-time grand slam winner Roger Federer in straight sets in today's semi-final.

Djokovic took the tie 7-5, 6-3, 7-6 (7-5) to seal his second appearance in a grand slam final. That Federer was his victim was fitting - his previous slam final ended in defeat to the Swiss at the US Open last year.

Though the Serbian's performance was impressive, Federer, who had been on a 19-match winning run at Melbourne Park, will be disappointed with his display. The uncharacteristic unforced errors he produced throughout the match gives fuel to those who claim that he no longer has the air of invulnerability that has marked his career. Sunday's final will be the first Federer has missed since the French Open in May 2005. He has featured in the last 10, winning eight of them.

"It's unbelievable to beat the No1 player in the world, probably the best this court has seen," said Djokovic. "I am very proud. It's very difficult to play against a player who is so dominant on any surface. He has been so successful in the last couple of years in Australia and he had the crowd behind him. I am amazed at the way I coped with the pressure and I played my best tennis."

The Serbian took two hours and 27 minutes to end that run and is yet to drop a set in the tournament. He will be odds-on favorite to take the title.

Federer, though, began the stronger and broke his opponent in the seventh game of the opening set, but struggled to consistently time his shots, allowing the 20-year-old Djokovic to break back. The Serb then rattled off the next two games to take the set 7-5.

That pattern continued into the second set, with Federer missing two forehands to give Djokovic the break in the fourth game. Djokovic then broke again to take a 5-1 lead and, though Federer was able to claw one of those breaks back, served up an ace to take a two-set lead.

Federer began to show flashes of his undoubted genius in the third set and had a set point against serve in the 12th game. Djokovic held out, however, and in the tension of the tie-break was able to hold his nerve, taking his first match point against the serve.

"I think he made the more important points today, it was a bit unfortunate for me," Federer admitted. "It depends a lot on form, you can't always play your best. There is no doubt I have played better before. I've created a monster that I need to win every tournament. Still, the semi-finals isn't bad."