Would Federer have beaten Djokovic today

[Beckerserve]

So many are saying berretini played well. I did not see that at all. Forecourt play was embarrassing. His drop shots were worse than mine and mine are bad but at least i get ball half way up the net as opposed to bouncing before hitting the net.
His BH was just dreadful and his two big weapons the serve and FH were very inconsistent. Yet he took Djokovic 3 and a half hours and got him to go psychotic.
Now, picture this. Roger Federer on other side of net. Whole crowd raucously supporting him . Federer has 20 Majors. Djokovic desperate to chase him down. Federer has a better serve than Berretini, nor has hard but much better directed. His returns are 10 levels above Berretini. His forecourt game 20 levels above.
On the basis of what Djokovic brought tonight could Federer have beaten him? I think he could have done i really do. I think Djokovic woukd have imploded like he did at the end today but a lot earlier.
Federer would have thrashed Berretini in r16 as he would have sliced every BH as Berretini cannot hit his FH or BH off low paced slice shots.
I said it at the time and ill say it again. Federer made a mistake withdrawing. He had a shout at SF. We will never know of course. Neither will he. And that is kind of the point.

 

[TheNachoMan]

He wouldn’t have lost the TB if Fed was playing

 

[NoleFam]

44 winners, 19 ue's, 70% 1st serve, 39% return points, 17/19 at net. What do you think?

 

[One]

Roger would've won 10 games. Matteo played really good, and was lucky Novak totally lost it in the TB, otherwise, it would've been 3:0 for Novak.

 

[longtimelurker]

Lol

 

[Mediterranean Might]

No chance lol

 

[Sampras-Bruguera 1993]

That crowd was really getting under Nole's skin. Fed would have had his chances. Nole's level does not look that good right now. It was much better last time at RG. But Nole also lives in Fed's brain rent free though

 

[gjm127]

Nah

 

[Rosstour]

Indisputable that Fed has a bigger arsenal than Mats. Only question is whether he'd be up to chasing down endless retrievals from Djok. I want to say no, but Djok is worse on natural surfaces than Federer, generally speaking.

 

[steenkash]

<--- Look at the last time it was Novak vs Federer, when every single member of the crowd was against Nole

 

[Nadal_Django]

Bud...

 

[Beckerserve]

Indisputable that Fed has a bigger arsenal than Mats. Only question is whether he'd be up to chasing down endless retrievals from Djok. I want to say no, but Djok is worse on natural surfaces than Federer, generally speaking.

Even 40 year old compromised federer moves better than Berretini who basically cannot move laterally especially to his FHbside.

 

[Swingmaster]

So many are saying berretini played well. I did not see that at all. Forecourt play was embarrassing. His drop shots were worse than mine and mine are bad but at least i get ball half way up the net as opposed to bouncing before hitting the net.
His BH was just dreadful and his two big weapons the serve and FH were very inconsistent. Yet he took Djokovic 3 and a half hours and got him to go psychotic.
Now, picture this. Roger Federer on other side of net. Whole crowd raucously supporting him . Federer has 20 Majors. Djokovic desperate to chase him down. Federer has a better serve than Berretini, nor has hard but much better directed. His returns are 10 levels above Berretini. His forecourt game 20 levels above.
On the basis of what Djokovic brought tonight could Federer have beaten him? I think he could have done i really do. I think Djokovic woukd have imploded like he did at the end today but a lot earlier.
Federer would have thrashed Berretini in r16 as he would have sliced every BH as Berretini cannot hit his FH or BH off low paced slice shots.
I said it at the time and ill say it again. Federer made a mistake withdrawing. He had a shout at SF. We will never know of course. Neither will he. And that is kind of the point.

Semifinals wouldve been a bad outcome for Fed. Three more gruelling matches, including some night matches. Just to get blown out by Nadal? Not worth it.

 

[40-15 still haunts me]

No, and thankfully he didn’t do that celebration at the end in front of Federer or his popularity would have plummeted overnight even more so than it already has

 

[Crazy Finn]

Hard to say.

2019 Federer probably does, maybe.

It's hard to pin down 2021 Federer's level.

Berrettini wasn't exactly great today - though he was in spots. He's basically a big serve and a big forehand and some poor shot choices. That was enough to push Novak to the brink of 5 sets.

 

[Beckerserve]

Semifinals wouldve been a bad outcome for Fed. Three more gruelling matches, including some night matches. Just to get blown out by Nadal? Not worth it.

If he had beat Djokovic he goes into W favourite. Djokovic tonight was very beatable.
Federer should have kept going unless he was injured.

 

[steenkash]

Federer would have rolled up in his Ellen Degeneres type military suit, and lost in 3 sets.

 

[Sampras-Bruguera 1993]

Fed isn't going to drop 300 dropshots/slices into the net like Matteo. Nole was VERY beatable today even for old Fed. Fed's question mark would be fitness. If Nole thinks this level is gonna get it done against Rafa, he may as well head home now

 

[Nadal_Django]

Even 40 year old compromised federer moves better than Berretini who basically cannot move laterally especially to his FHbside.

Bud, you must be in the 7th heaven right now. Congrats

Every Nadal fan prefers to face Djokovic than Berretini. 7-1 is just a massive advantage.
Berretini has the tools to down Rafa. As does Sinner.

 

[Swingmaster]

If he had beat Djokovic he goes into W favourite. Djokovic tonight was very beatable.
Federer should have kept going unless he was injured.

Maybe he shouldve kept going for the sake of sportsmanship, but it wouldve hurt his chances at Wimbledon. That is of course why he withdrew.

 

[Aabye5]

So many are saying berretini played well. I did not see that at all. Forecourt play was embarrassing. His drop shots were worse than mine and mine are bad but at least i get ball half way up the net as opposed to bouncing before hitting the net.
His BH was just dreadful and his two big weapons the serve and FH were very inconsistent. Yet he took Djokovic 3 and a half hours and got him to go psychotic.
Now, picture this. Roger Federer on other side of net. Whole crowd raucously supporting him . Federer has 20 Majors. Djokovic desperate to chase him down. Federer has a better serve than Berretini, nor has hard but much better directed. His returns are 10 levels above Berretini. His forecourt game 20 levels above.
On the basis of what Djokovic brought tonight could Federer have beaten him? I think he could have done i really do. I think Djokovic woukd have imploded like he did at the end today but a lot earlier.
Federer would have thrashed Berretini in r16 as he would have sliced every BH as Berretini cannot hit his FH or BH off low paced slice shots.
I said it at the time and ill say it again. Federer made a mistake withdrawing. He had a shout at SF. We will never know of course. Neither will he. And that is kind of the point.

If you had phrased it as Berrettini could have played better, I would agree. He was nervous, and Nole played great but not his very best. However, I think Berrettini's serve was good enough to beat anyone who is not the greatest returner of all time.

 

[Rosstour]

Even 40 year old compromised federer moves better than Berretini who basically cannot move laterally especially to his FHbside.

Point to point--yes.

But over the course of a match where fatigue sets in, stamina comes into play as well. That's what I'd have worried about for Fed.

 

[Beckerserve]

Bud, you must be in the 7th heaven right now. Congrats

If Rafa plays well i think he could beat down Djokovic badly again got to be honest.

 

[Beckerserve]

If you had phrased it as Berrettini could have played better, I would agree. He was nervous, and Nole played great but not his very best. However, I think Berrettini's serve was good enough to beat anyone who is not the greatest returner of all time.

His 2nd serve stats were awful. Federer would have also feasted on the 2nd serve

 

[GabeT]

 

[guga_fan]

Obviously not, the only set Berrettini won was with a 23-13 differential and 7 aces, and even then Djokovic was 2 good serves away from finishing in straights.

 

[Winner]

It would have been 40-15 again.



In the unforced errors statistic.

 

[FlamingCheeto]

Fed would have easily beaten Berrenttini but lost to DJoker in 4

 

[Aabye5]

His 2nd serve stats were awful. Federer would have also feasted on the 2nd serve

Yes, his 2nd serve was not so good. I should have specified and said his first serve. I don't have the stats in front of me, but correct if I'm wrong, didn't Berrettini hit an ace or an unreturnable on that first match point? I suspect that not too many people except those giants, Roger, and maybe Rafa can say that.

Plus his forehand was blistering. I read it was 113mph.

 

[Swingmaster]

It's a shame that Nadal will never have a true clay rival. Couldve been Soderling but injured. Couldve been Thiem but oh well.

 

[Winner]

It's a shame that Nadal will never have a true clay rival. Couldve been Soderling but injured. Couldve been Thiem but oh well.

9 RG matches vs Djoker, 6 vs Fed. That's a rivalry.

 

[pj80]

Yes Fed would have won since it is a hypothetical...but its a pity decided to bail out of a slam for being tired

 

[Beckerserve]

Yes, his 2nd serve was not so good. I should have specified and said his first serve. I don't have the stats in front of me, but correct if I'm wrong, didn't Berrettini hit an ace or an unreturnable on that first match point? I suspect that not too many people except those giants, Roger, and maybe Rafa can say that.

Plus his forehand was blistering. I read it was 113mph.

Average speed 113mph?

 

[Aabye5]

Average speed 113mph?

Not average, just his max.

 

[Beckerserve]

Not average, just his max.

Any idea on his avg?

 

[reef58]

I love how TTW likes to try and rewrite history based on their own biased opinions. You guys are actually convincing yourself Fed would have won, when Fed himself knew he had no shot. MB played very well. He has a backhand weakness, but it is not horrible, His serve and forehand are next level. His tactics are so so. The problem in trying to exploit his backhand is his forehand is so powerful unless you are a superb shotmaker he is going to push you around and you cannot get a shot to the backhand, The guy is a top 10 player who played about as well as he could. He probably should have won the first set, but probably should have lost the third.

 

[reef58]

Any idea on his avg?

His average is the highest on tour, spin is second highest behind Ruud according to Tennis Channel.

 

[nolefam_2024]

Roger would have been bagelled

 

[Aabye5]

Any idea on his avg?

No, I wish I had that.

However, there is the article from AO where he was in the top 5 for max forehand speed at this year's tournament. He hit 208.5km, which is about 103mph. It looks like tonight he went all out.

Infosys analysis: Best performers at AO 2021

Thanks to insights powered by Infosys, we can reveal the players who generated the fastest serve, forehand and backhand speeds, as well as those who applied the most pressure to their opponents.

ausopen.com

 

[Swingmaster]

9 RG matches vs Djoker, 6 vs Fed. That's a rivalry.

A rivalry is two sided.

 

[Kralingen]

I’m not convinced Federer could have reached a lot of Djokovic’s rally balls tbh. Novak would have played him completely differently and moved him around as much as possible. Federer would still definitely win some games and have some turning back the clock moments but overall Djokovic could abuse his movement and there’s no way Federer would have lasted 3.5 hours on clay today.

If the question is: could Federer beat Djokovic again in his career, the answer is absolutely yes if his fitness improves. The guy’s FH is still powerful and accurate and he knows how to serve around Djokovic better than anyone who’s ever played. Wimbledon this year would be interesting.

 

[beast of mallorca]

So many are saying berretini played well. I did not see that at all. Forecourt play was embarrassing. His drop shots were worse than mine and mine are bad but at least i get ball half way up the net as opposed to bouncing before hitting the net.
His BH was just dreadful and his two big weapons the serve and FH were very inconsistent. Yet he took Djokovic 3 and a half hours and got him to go psychotic.
Now, picture this. Roger Federer on other side of net. Whole crowd raucously supporting him . Federer has 20 Majors. Djokovic desperate to chase him down. Federer has a better serve than Berretini, nor has hard but much better directed. His returns are 10 levels above Berretini. His forecourt game 20 levels above.
On the basis of what Djokovic brought tonight could Federer have beaten him? I think he could have done i really do. I think Djokovic woukd have imploded like he did at the end today but a lot earlier.
Federer would have thrashed Berretini in r16 as he would have sliced every BH as Berretini cannot hit his FH or BH off low paced slice shots.
I said it at the time and ill say it again. Federer made a mistake withdrawing. He had a shout at SF. We will never know of course. Neither will he. And that is kind of the point.

Where's your poll ?

 

[daggerman]

I'm not sure what some folks are watching. Both Djokovic and Berrettini played at a much higher level than Federer showed during this tournament. That's no knock on Roger -- he's still not completely fit, and because of that, he shouldn't be expected to be competitive with somebody of Djokovic's ilk.

Novak would've likely won ~60% of the points against Roger had they played.

 

[TennisFan3]

Fed would have lost in straights.

 

[GhostofPetros]

Lol Fed might have gotten 5 games if Nole was taking it easy so as not to stress himself for the next match

 

[beltsman]

It's a shame that Nadal will never have a true clay rival. Couldve been Soderling but injured. Couldve been Thiem but oh well.

Soderling? Destroyed in 2010.

 

[GhostofPetros]

Soderling? Destroyed in 2010.

mono

 

[Third Serve]

Fed would have won the whole thing

 

[NLBwell]

Djokovic may have played much better having Federer across the net. Tennis is a very mental game.

 

[T007]

He wouldn’t have lost the TB if Fed was playing

He wouldn't have won the first 2 sets easily if Fed was playing