5 iconic Novak Djokovic matches at the French Open

vs Roger Federer, 2011 semi-final

A veritable battle of the greats at the 2011 French Open saw Djokovic and nemesis Roger Federer in the same half and vying for a spot in the finals. Djokovic played out of his skin on a 41 match-winning streak, playing a Roger Federer on top of his game.

The pair played such a spectacularly close game that all their spectators, a certain Rafael Nadal included, thought Djokovic would seize it. It was only due to the sheer perfection of Roger Federer’s own strokeplay that the Swiss managed to win that game – which he would go on to describe as the ‘game of my life.’

Described by Nadal as “... the greatest of the moment against the greatest of [the] history”, the match saw the Serb serving out for the fourth set and giving it his all against the man who has gone on to become his arch-rival. Federer wrested control at set point to eventually turn it on its head, winning 7-5 and eventually the semi-final tie despite the Serb being on the verge of forcing a fifth set.