Federer says ‘stars are aligned’ as Djokovic visualises Wimbledon glory
Novak Djokovic is placing huge importance on the visualisation process at Wimbledon, while Roger Federer has a 21st major in his sights.
Roger Federer believes the “stars are aligned” but he may have to produce another out-of-this-world performance to dethrone Novak Djokovic at Wimbledon.
Federer followed up his record 100th victory at the All England Club against Kei Nishikori by beating old rival Rafael Nadal in a classic semi-final on Friday.
The Swiss legend faces another mouthwatering duel with defending champion Djokovic in the final at SW19 on Sunday.
Federer produced a regal Centre Court masterclass to down fellow great Nadal 7-6 (7-3) 1-6 6-3 6-4 and does not feel he needs to do any homework for the challenge of taking on the world number one.
The 20-time grand slam champion said: “This is like a school: the day of the test you’re not going to read, I don’t know, how many books that day. You don’t have the time anyhow.
“It’s quite clear the work was done way before. I think that’s why I was able to produce a good result against Rafa. It’s been a rock-solid year from me, [I] won in Halle.
“Stars are aligned right now. From that standpoint I can go into that match [against Djokovic] very confident.”
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Federer added on the battle between the top two seeds: “At the end of the day it comes very much down to who’s better on the day, who’s in a better mental place, who’s got more energy left, who’s tougher when it really comes to the crunch.
“In the tennis, there’s always somebody who’s going to be a little bit better because there’s no draws in our sport. It’s always quite brutal sometimes.”
Top seed Djokovic has won his last three matches against Federer and beat him in both of their previous two deciders at the grass-court major.
The Serb says his use of the visualisation process has enabled him to see clearly as he strives to retain the title.
“It is part of my pre-match routine. I also do it on the court. I think we all do it to some extent, whether it’s conscious or unconscious.” said the 32-year-old.
“I think it’s normal that when you care about something, you want to prepare yourself the best possible. Especially on the changeovers, you visualise and imagine what the next point or next game will be like.
“It is a quite challenging battle within yourself. I think at this stage we play in one of the most important stadiums and tournaments in the world, playing semi-finals, finals, fighting for the trophy with one of the biggest rivals.
“I think the most important and probably the first win that you have to make is the one within yourself, then whatever happens externally is, I guess, a consequence or manifestation of that.
“The visualisation is part of the mental preparation. It’s very, very important for me. I do it all the time.”
